Last Friday I wrote,"Iran has the patience to wait out the West, it knows that it's just a matter of time before the global economy shifts its centre of gravity to the East completely."

Now on cue comes this story from the NYT. It covers the essay by Sun Bigan who was China's special envoy on the Middle East, and was China's ambassador to Iran, as well as in Saudi Arabia and Iraq.

Sun Bigan writes that, "The U.S. has always sought to control the faucet of global oil supplies. There is cooperation between China and the U.S., but there is also struggle, and the U.S. has always seen us as a potential foe"

He also says this, "Both now and in the future, the Middle East should be our first choice in importing oil and developing oil cooperation," Sun wrote. China should focus on strengthening trade with Saudi Arabia, Iran and Oman, he added."

The NYT article ends with Bigan warning, "Obama's new Middle East policy is merely a tactical adjustment, and the United States will not and cannot alter its global goals and dominance,"

I couldn't have said it better myself. The old imperial power Britain and France, and the new one America, are clawing to get their hands on the world's most precious resource. It's the same story replayed over and over again, with different actors and different scripts. Iran and the public should be vigilant to the neo-imperialist impulses at work here.