Who do they plan to ship to using their newly-conquered shipping lanes, exactly?
They will find that the rest of the civilized world can say "No" to China, just as it has to Russia.
They will find that the rest of the civilized world can say "No" to China, just as it has to Russia.
Umm...except for US+EU, no one is saying No to Russian oil and other exports. Of-course, you are free to consider that the "rest of the civilized world" in your mind.
The whole point is that $52/barrel isn't (only) geopolitics, it's also about oil purity.
[0]https://www.neste.com/investors/market-data/crude-oil-prices
how do their imports compare to their exports?