"No country will be immune to the effects of this crisis if it continues to go in this direction. So there is a need for global efforts," said the International Energy Agency chief Fatih Birol. SYDNEY: The global economy is under "major threat" from the energy crisis caused by the Middle East war, International Energy Agency chief Fatih Birol said Monday (Mar 23). Speaking at the National Press Club in Australia's capital, Birol described the crisis in the Middle East as "very severe" and worse