It's all about the oil (at least for China)

China is the biggest beneficiary of Iraq's oil boom, cutting new contracts, building compounds and airports, making major infrastructure investments, and making friends with the locals. 'In fancy hotels in the port city of Basra, Chinese executives impress their hosts not just by speaking Arabic, but Iraqi-accented Arabic.'

Maybe we should let them assume some of the defense / security costs and responsibilities, too …

I found this side note interesting:

'Notably, what the Chinese are not doing is complaining. Unlike the executives of Western oil giants like Exxon Mobil, the Chinese happily accept the strict terms of Iraq’s oil contracts, which yield only minimal profits. China is more interested in energy to fuel its economy than profits to enrich its oil giants.'

'Chinese companies do not have to answer to shareholders, pay dividends or even generate profits. They are tools of Beijing’s foreign policy of securing a supply of energy for its increasingly prosperous and energy hungry population. “We don’t have any problems with them,” said Abdul Mahdi al-Meedi, an Iraqi Oil Ministry official who handles contracts with foreign oil companies. “They are very cooperative. There’s a big difference, the Chinese companies are state companies, while Exxon or BP or Shell are different.”'

I have no desire to see major businesses operate under a central government control, but there are some strategic advantages to being able to disregard this quarter's profit in favor of long-term investment.

(h/t +George Wiman)

Reshared post from +Jeffrey Canton

Good thing we spent all of that "blood and treasure" in Iraq