Attended the Arab-Chinese summit, etc.
Contracts worth 38 trillion won are expected
Strengthen cooperation with other Arab countries
Chinese President Xi Jinping paid a state visit to Saudi Arabia for four days and three nights. Since the beginning of his third term in power, he has continued his sweeping diplomatic moves, digging into the gap in weakening US influence in the Middle East.
The Chinese Foreign Ministry announced that President Xi will visit Saudi Arabia from 7 to 10 at the invitation of King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud. During this period, President Xi will attend the first Arab-China summit and the Sino-Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) summit. Earlier, Saudi Arabia’s state-run SPA news agency also reported that President Xi would hold talks with King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman after arriving in the country on the 7th.
Xi’s visit to Saudi Arabia is the first in nearly seven years since January 2016. President Xi’s latest visit draws more attention as it comes at a time when Saudi Arabia is in conflict with the United States over cuts to oil production. Saudi Arabia is a traditional ally of the United States and its biggest ally in the Middle East, but relations deteriorated when the United States accused Crown Prince Mohammed of being behind the assassination of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018. This year, the gap has widened further, highlighting differences in position not only on the issue of oil production cuts, but also on the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Meanwhile, China is discussing yuan crude oil settlement with Saudi Arabia and is actively taking close strides in supporting Saudi Arabia’s participation in the BRICS (a group of five emerging economies including China). The two countries have an interest in being the largest importers and exporters of crude oil. Bloomberg News reported that “Saudi Arabia rolled out the red carpet for President Xi two months after ignoring President Biden’s request to ramp up oil production.”
Through this visit, President Xi is expected to actively seek to expand his influence in the Middle East while strengthening relations with Saudi Arabia, which is billed as the leader of the Middle East. SPA news agency reported that China and Saudi Arabia will sign a contract worth 110 billion riyals (about 38.6 trillion won) during President Xi’s visit. In addition, Reuters reported that Chinese firms are expected to participate in Saudi Arabia’s Neom City project, a large-scale smart city construction project, in various ways due to President Xi’s visit.
This time, China is expected to pursue various agreements through the summit with other Arab countries and the GCC. In addition to energy, GCC countries offer investment opportunities in assets, construction contracts, infrastructure, manufacturing and the digital economy that fit China’s Belt and Road Initiative, Reuters said. The GCC is an economic and security cooperation organization between Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Qatar along the Gulf Coast.
