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Oil for Missiles: Our Friends the Saudis Make Friends with the Chinese

(Wall Street Journal) Richard L. Russell - It was no coincidence that Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah this week chose China for his first official trip outside the Middle East since acceding to the throne in August. With a pact for closer cooperation in oil, natural gas, and minerals signed during the visit, the two countries are laying the foundations for a strategic relationship that challenges U.S. interests. Since 9/11, and the American public's backlash over the fact that the majority of the hijackers were Saudi nationals, Riyadh's search for a new strategic partner has assumed fresh impetus. China, for its part, is importing ever increasing amounts of oil from the Gulf to fuel its rapidly expanding economy. Saudi Arabia's CSS-2 missiles are now obsolescent and Riyadh would welcome modern Chinese models as replacements. In the old days of the Cold War, the U.S. viewed the security relationships in the Middle East through the prism of its rivalry with the Soviet Union. Today, Russian power in the Middle East has withdrawn, but China's power, especially in the Persian Gulf, is increasing, a dimension of world politics that American policy makers need to begin focusing on. The writer teaches at the National Defense University's Near East and South Asia Center for Strategic Studies.
2006-01-25 00:00:00
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