DUBAI: State news agency SPA reported on Tuesday that Chinese President Xi Jinping will be in Saudi Arabia from December 7 to 9 for an official visit and to attend a Chinese-Saudi summit.
Since 2016, this is President Xi’s first trip to the largest crude oil exporter in the world. According to the agency, the trip will include a bilateral summit that will be presided over by Saudi King Salman and attended by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the de facto ruler of the kingdom.
According to the state news agency, Xi, who leads the second-largest economy in the world, will also attend a summit with leaders from the six-member Gulf Cooperation Council and meetings with leaders from other parts of the Middle East.
The Chinese chief’s appearance harmonizes with uplifted strains between Saudi Arabia and the US over issues going from energy strategy to local security and common freedoms.
In October, the OPEC+ oil bloc agreed to cut production by two million barrels per day, which the White House characterized as “aligning with Russia” regarding the war in Ukraine. This was the latest setback for the partnership, which had been in place for decades.
OPEC+ decided on Sunday to maintain those cuts.
China purchases approximately a quarter of Saudi Arabia’s oil exports, making it the country’s largest crude oil consumer.
Analysts say that, in addition to energy, leaders from the two countries are expected to talk about possible deals that could see Chinese companies get more involved in huge projects that are important to Prince Mohammed’s plan to diversify the Saudi economy away from oil.
These initiatives include NEOM, a futuristic, $500 billion megacity that is known as a “cognitive city” and will heavily rely on technology for facial recognition and surveillance.
On a trip that also included stops in Egypt and Saudi Arabia’s rival Iran, Xi last visited Saudi Arabia in 2016. This was the year that Prince Mohammed became the first in line to the throne.
During his 2019 Asia tour, Prince Mohammed paid a visit to China and met with Xi.
