Kevin Drum points to the cover of the Economist.
This has hardly been the UN’s finest moment, and China and supposed-American-ally Pakistan abstained on even the milquetoast resolution that the United States eventually compromised on. But I suppose it’s a start.
But I am left wondering why those two countries abstained. CNN reports that
Zhang Yishan, the deputy Chinese ambassador to the U.N. told the Security Council “these measures are not helpful” and “may further complicate the situation in Sudan.”
Is there not more to it than that? Does China not have major interests in the Darfur region? Take a look at this map and see who has the rights to area 6, or Southern Darfur. Yup, the Chinese government operating as the Chinese National Petroleum Corporation.(CNPC)
Is that just coincidental? Or is the 800,000,000 – 1, 200,000,000 barrels of oil in Sudan anything to do with it?
For more read the Human Rights Watch report.