The emergence of China as an economic superpower

Five full years has passed since Saddam Hussein abruptly stepped off from his pedestal of power, with relations between China and Iraq finally returning to its previous state of affairs. The two countries are close to re-signing a $1.2 billion oil deal, said an Iraqi Oil Minister said on Thursday. Back in 2003, the Iraqi government had an agreement with China's CNOOC to develop al-Ahdab oil fields, a deal that was never completed largely due to UN sanctions banning any international involvement with Iraq's oil industry. So what did Beijing do? China waited for the US invasion to render the sanctions useless, and resumed talks in 2006.

As Iraq's situation stabilizes, its overall oil output has gradually increased, from 2.5 million barrels per day to 3 million barrels per day, with an estimated output of 4.5 million barrels per day by 2013. In fact, Iraq has more than 115 billion barrels of crude oil within its borders, but war has crippled the economy and output. The fields that CNOOC are hoping to gain access to, al-Ahdab oil fields, could produce an estimated 115,000 barrels a day.

When the two sides met last week in Amman, Jordan, the governor of Wasit province, where the al-Ahbad fields lie and also the scene of sporadic rebel attacks, assured the Chinese that they would be protected by Iraqi security forces. "We are expecting that the next round of discussions in April will finish the negotiations," an official said.