After an extended period of reduced engagement in the Middle East and a refocusing inwards on itself, which allowed China and Russia to exploit the resultant power vacuum, there have been several signs recently that the U.S. has decided that now is a good time to take up where it left off a few years ago. In the energy sector, there have been several high-profile deals in regions of great geopolitical sensitivity in recent weeks that have been made by U.S. companies or companies of countries alongside the U.S. in its sphere of influence. The latest…