One Doesn't Need To Be...

An oil industry specialist (I am certainly not one--I stress it all the time), to understand how and why, as even oil-ignorant me warned about Saudis being royally fvcked once they initiated the oil war. Recall what I wrote exactly a month ago: 

My question in this case is this: didn't you, guys, see that coming? Have anyone in D.C. tried to mitigate the problem by engaging Russia, not Saudis, who is in real control of situation? Any diplomacy, any quid-pro-quo? No? Well, then I guess you have only yourself to blame for not having a faintest clue about Russia. Continue chest beating, while Russia will put Saudis on their knees and then will give the United States, yet another, chance to save face and come to the negotiating table.  

You see, even such oil ignoramuses like me knew that Saudis are minor players in this game because only people with nukes, navies, air forces and complex industrial economies of scale are major players. Well, guess what: 

China boosts oil imports from Russia, while slashing purchases from Saudi Arabia 

It is kinda self-evident that it is not enough to have product, one has to sell it, has market for it that is, and Russia has her markets, while Saudis are having a hell of a time trying to hold on to ones they...ahem, had. Don't trust me:

(Bloomberg) -- Oil-rich Gulf nations may turn to asset sales to complement an almost $50 billion debt spree to support economies rocked by the coronavirus pandemic and the collapse in crude prices, according to Citigroup Inc. Countries including Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have “really attractive” government-owned assets, which could be sold to the public or partnered with other investors, Atiq Rehman, head of Citigroup Inc.’s emerging-market cluster for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, said in an interview.

Russia knew from the get go that China will have to reposition herself towards Russia's energy (and not just oil) because neither tanker oil, nor LNG can compete with pipelines, especially the ones which are already built and operational, not to speak of a cluster of gigantic Russian processing plants being built right on China's threshold to provide all needs not only in crude and gas but in high value added products of hydrocarbons processing. You know, like Amur Gas Processing Plant. And then, and then... there are Indian Ocean SLOCs which cannot be defended by China once mighty US Navy's submarine force is given the order to interrupt Gulf's oil supplies to China. And yes, there is always Russia and her Armed Forces which can secure supply of necessary energy to China. So, simple--just one look at the map is enough to understand. And we even are not talking about nuclear energy part. Yes, about that: reading today about Rosatom (in Russian), I stumbled on this startling number about legendary MIFI's (MEPhI) international enrollment. While all kinds of fraudster rating agencies in the West blow smoke up our assess creating all kinds of university ratings, among Turkish students the competition for a single vacancy in MIFI reaches 72 applicants. 

So, Russian-Chinese relations are going to be growing not just because out of pure economic sense but geopolitical too. Or geoeconomical one, if one wishes. It seems that China finally understood who real friends are or, as they say in Caucasus, close neighbor is closer than the remote relative. As for oil wars, they are just but one episode of a much larger (and by much I mean order of magnitude) global realignment which involves way-way more than just actual oil, not to speak of worthless speculative papers aka futures, but a strategic reorientation of the world towards nuclear energy and, eventually, transition to a manned exploration of the Solar System.