“The US wants to throw a spanner in the Chinese high growth rates before it becomes a major challenger,” said Salim

By Alaa Abul Eneen, IOL Staff

CAIRO , September 18 (IslamOnline.net) – The US is making use of its occupation of Iraq and intervention in Sudan to “encircle” the Chinese giant and depriving it from the flow of the Arab oil to halt its stunning development and steady economic growth, Arab Analysts have said.

“The US sees future challenges from China , that is way Washington is trying by all means to encircle the Asian giant from all directions. In achieving its goals, the US has invaded Afghanistan and had military presence in Pakistan as well as in South Korea and the Pacific islands,” said Mohammad Al-Sayed Salim, professor of political sciences at the faculty of economics and political sciences, Cairo University .

Speaking at a symposium at the Cairo University ’s Center of Asian Studies , Salim said the US war on Iraq was to deprive China from the Arab oil reserves in the Gulf region, especially in Iraq , which has the second largest oil reserves in the world.

“By launching the war on Iraq , Washington wanted to have a military foothold in the Arab Gulf region for encircling China and depriving China from the Iraqi oil reserves, on which China mainly depends

“The goal was to throw a spanner in the Chinese high growth rates before it becomes a major challenger to the US ,” the analyst added.

A case in point, Salim said, US President George W. Bush had described China during his 2000 election campaign as a “strategic challenger”.

China has recently overtaken Japan to become the world's second biggest oil consumer after the US , propelled up the rankings by a long-running economic boom.

Darfur Concession

His colleague professor Anwar Abdul Malek agreed that Washington was trying her best to deprive China from the Arab oil.

“After Iraq , Washington wants to intervene in Sudan where China is the major oil client in the country,” he said at the symposium.

The oil concession in southern Darfur is currently in the hands of the China National Petroleum Company.

The UN Security Council late on Saturday, September 18, passed a US-drafted resolution threatening to “envisage” sanctions against Sudan 's oil industry unless the Khartoum government meets its commitment to restore security to its troubled Darfur province.

China abstained from the vote, though threatening initially to veto the measure, arguing that only political solution would bring peace to the troubled region of Darfur .

Future Challengers

Salim also said Beijing has always avoided to go in clear confrontations with the United States despite the US intentions.

“ China is now trying to reassure other world powers including the US that its development serves the interests of all parties,” said Salim.

Prominent Arab writer Mohammad Hassanein Hekal had said that the US wanted by its war on Iraq to flex its muscles and show its military juggernaut, sending an unmistakable message to its future challengers, including China, Japan and Germany that it is the world’s sole superpower.

Hekal cited an American report, published early September 2001, days before the bloody September attacks on New York and Washington , that the US was no longer facing challenges from Russia .

The report further said China , Germany and Japan would pose future challenges to the United States , a matter which requires a US action.

Hekal said the September attacks left no option to the Bush right-wing administration but to adopt the recommendations of the report in dealing with those future competitors.