Do you think the Chinese would be there absent the US invasion?China National Petroleum has rapidly expanded its presence in the Iraqi oil business. CNPC is now operating four projects in the as-yet-untouched southern part of the country, making it the single biggest foreign investor in Iraq.
"Before the invasion, there were just two things standing in the way of Western oil companies operating in Iraq: Saddam Hussein and the nation's legal system.
"The invasion dealt handily with Hussein.
"To address the latter problem, some both inside and outside of the Bush administration argued that it should simply change Iraq's oil laws through the U.S.-led coalition government of Iraq, which ran the country from April 2003 to June 2004.
"Instead the White House waited, choosing to pressure the newly elected Iraqi government to pass new oil legislation itself."
Why the war in Iraq was fought for Big Oil - CNN.com