China keeps its hands clean in Gulf waters
(World News Russia)

The question is not if, but when the long-standing American defense umbrella in the Gulf, the world´s most militarized and volatile region, will be replaced by a multilateral security arrangement that would have to include China as well as Russia. The United States´ perceived diminishing commitment to the Gulf and the broader Middle East and mounting doubts about the deterrence value of its defense umbrella leave the Gulf stuck between a rock and a hard place. The American umbrella is shrinking, but neither China nor Russia, despite their obvious interests, are capable or willing simply to shoulder the responsibility, political risk, and cost of replacing it. On balance, China´s interests...