China wants Iraqi oil

China may be the first country to buy oil from Iraq, thanks to a contract they originally negotiated with Saddam. The oil multinationals see this as a good sign—that Iraq may finally be a safe place to do business, and they're happy to see contracts going to someone other than U.S. companies. 

But China's growing thirst for energy is also forcing it into some less hospitable markets. The IHT reports:

In its search, China is scouring the backwaters of the world, from monsoon-lashed Myanmar to the deserts of Iran, to the deep seas off Sudan and North Korea, cutting deals with governments that the United States and many other countries consider pariahs.

China's oil diplomacy is putting the country on a collision course with the United States and Western Europe, which have imposed sanctions on some of the countries where China is doing business. "China is so desperate for energy resources that they will take the heat from the international community," said Mike Green, an analyst at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington.

 

"This is the first test of whether the world can influence China, or China influence the world," Green said.