Pretty smart - get someone else to pay for your protetcion
"Thus, it wouldn’t be surprising if the Chinese government is highly interested in getting a better sense of the possibility of deeper U.S. military involvement that could help protect the Chinese oil infrastructure in Iraq,”
"The West" (mainly US/UK/OZ) in its role as the World's Policeman(TM) spends lives and money "bringing democracy" to various countries and dealing with eruptions of local difficulties. The Chinese come along behind and do business. Smart that.