As China's oil imports approach U.S. levels, the voices in Washington blaming China for not playing a responsible role in the Middle East are also gaining momentum. A recent article in The Wall Street Journal on Oct. 11 titled "Middle East Oil Fuels Fresh China-U.S. Tensions" argues that "Beijing depends on the U.S. military to secure Middle East imports." Experts in major U.S. think tanks also frequently ask "what does China do in the Middle East?" By this, they mean that China has done very little for the region.

The two discourses share the same logic that China has been a major importer of Middle East oil, just behind the U.S, and will soon surpass the U.S, but that China is dependent on the U.S. for regional and maritime security. These arguments ostensibly sound reasonable, but is this really the case? The following questions and facts need to be addressed.

[By Jiao Haiyang/China.org.cn]

Firstly, does the U.S. military presence in the Middle East really serve to maintain security and stability? The U.S. might really believe that its military forces have played a positive role in maintaining stability in the region, and many people in other parts of the world also believe that without the U.S. troops, the Middle East would be more chaotic. But there are also challenges to this point of view.

Few doubt that the biased policy of the U.S. toward Israel is the major cause of Israel's intransigence in the peace process, for instance, its unwillingness to freeze settlement constructions, and its over use of violence to protect itself while undermining the security of Palestine. This is also the major reason why the Arab and Muslim world are dissatisfied with the U.S., which provided fertile soil for Islamic extremists.

The U.S. might be truly serious in fighting terrorism through its two wars in the Middle East, but they have both caused more security problems than they have solved. The war in Afghanistan was authorized by the UN Security Council, but the international community believes that the U.S. overused military measures in Afghanistan, since many civilians have been killed. The Iraq war is illegal since it was not authorized by the UNSC.

It is easier to overthrow a regime than establish a new order. As a result of the two wars, Afghanistan and Iraq have become more insecure, with increased numbers of suicide bombings and other kinds of violence, and more humanitarian crises have taken place.

The withdrawal of U.S. forces from the two countries might be aimed at redistributing strategic resources, but it is also because the U.S. has realized that the stationed forces have become sources of dissatisfaction and hatred, since the people of the region regard the U.S. troops as occupying forces.

It cannot be denied that the U.S. military presence in the Middle East is for energy security though it is doubtful whether it really achieves that effect in reality, and it is equally incorrect to say that it is only for energy security. The policy has multiple goals, including protection of U.S. allies like Israel, counter-terrorism, and oil security.