Alice Han

So it'll be interesting, I think, to see after the NPC in the beginning of March, if there is going to be a bit of a soul searching and a change in the national security and foreign policy bent.

Okay, we'll be back with more after a quick break.

Stay with us.

There's no question that the US abduction of Venezuela's president, Nicolas Maduro, was a major setback for China.

For all of Venezuela's dysfunction, it was a crucial geopolitical asset for China in Latin America.

At the center of all of this is oil.

In the narrow sense, that's because China's massive lending program to Venezuela was being repaid largely in crude.

But more broadly, oil will determine whether the U.S.

and China can coexist or collide over Venezuela in the years ahead.

Joining us is Michal Meydin, director of the China Energy Program at the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies and one of the world's leading experts on China's energy strategy.

Well, I wanted to broaden out a little bit and speak a little bit about the Russia relationship.

We've got the US seizing one of the Russian tankers.

Now there is talk about a bill being voted on that could put sanctions on Russian crude, and that could affect not just China, but India.

Is there a risk that beyond Venezuela, this affects China's imports of oil elsewhere, where the ratio is potentially much higher than it is in Venezuela?

Well, I want to actually piggyback on this discussion.

I completely agree with you, Michal.

I think that beyond the oil issue, which I think is what the U.S.

is fixated on for China, it would be deeply concerned about the financial conditions.

implications, both in terms of lending and investment.

And when I think about China's strategic investments in the region, a lot of it is around commodities.