ABSTRACT
A paradox of the structure of China's foreign trade is that a sizeable part of its export is shipped to China's most likely adversary in a potential conflict. With expansive regional ambitions, China has logically oriented its military modernization in the direction of a potential war against the United States often euphemistically designed as an unidentified "more powerful" adversary. China remains conversely poorly endowed in oil and gas reserves, and, as put by Yang Hongxi, "China's energy security problem boils down to an oil and gas security problem". In spite of its relatively limited share in the Chinese energy mix, oil remains a pivotal and largely irreplaceable energy source for the good health of the Chinese economy. The largest part of Chinese oil imports is, and, in all probabilities, will remain, seaborne. Saudi Arabia, Iran and Angola have been China's three largest suppliers more than three-quarters of Chinese oil imports were coming from Middle East or Africa.
