US wraps up military mission in Iraq, giving Baghdad room to strengthen China ties
Analysts say Beijing will pursue energy and commercial deals after American withdrawal but will not seek to fill a security role
But they cautioned that the shift was unlikely to create a power vacuum for Beijing to fill, with China lacking both the ambition and capacity to take on the US security role.
The mission, launched in 2014 to fight Islamic State, has been replaced by an Iraqi-led security effort, while Washington has said it will continue targeted training and intelligence support.
