Xi’s Saudi trip, summits boost economic exchanges, give new impetus to partnership and advance regional peace

Visitors tour a photo exhibition featuring cooperation and exchanges between China and Arab states, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on Dec 7. (WANG DONGZHEN / XINHUA)

President Xi Jinping’s landmark visit to the Middle East has cemented China’s strategic partnership with Arab states, mapping out joint actions for pragmatic cooperation and ushering in a new era for the building of a community with a shared future, officials and experts said.

They said the trip and his attendance at regional cooperation summits sends a positive signal to the Gulf Cooperation Council region and beyond.

Closer cooperation between China and the Arab states will contribute to regional peace and security, benefiting the peoples of both sides.

The president returned to China on Dec 10 after wrapping up his four-day trip to Riyadh, during which he made his first state visit to Saudi Arabia in six years and attended the first China-Arab States Summit and the China-Gulf Cooperation Council Summit.

The trip, marking a diplomatic action of the highest level and largest scale by China with the Arab world, has led Beijing’s ties with Riyadh, the GCC and Arab states into a new era of comprehensive and in-depth development, State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi said after the conclusion of Xi’s visit.

Wang, who is also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, said the proposals made by Xi at the summit with Arab leaders outlined the pathways forward for the building of a China-Arab community with a shared future and the top-level design for growth of relations in the new era.

Xi, at the summit with Arab leaders, laid out eight major initiatives on pragmatic cooperation in various sectors. Among these, Beijing would discuss with the Arab side the implementation of assistance projects worth 5 billion yuan ($718.7 million) and strive to boost annual trade to $430 billion by 2027, from $330.3 billion in 2021.

Beijing also extended a positive message on hosting the next China-Arab States Summit, the date for which will be decided by both sides.

Wu Bingbing, director of the Center for Middle East Studies at Peking University, said Xi’s latest trip to the Middle East was significant as it elevated China’s ties with Arab nations to head-of-state diplomacy under a multilateral framework, and institutionalized the elevation in relations.

“The most prominent significance of the summit lies in the political and diplomatic level,” she said.

Beijing is also advocating the establishment of an inclusive mechanism for the security of the Middle East, especially through a new security architecture in the region and appeals for common security, Wu said.

“China’s cooperation with the GCC and the League of Arab States is not exclusive,” she said, adding that the nation welcomes cooperation with other players such as Europe and Russia.

At the invitation of Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud, leaders of China and the Arab member states of the Arab League held the first China-Arab States Summit in Riyadh on Dec 9. The aim was to develop ties between the two sides in various fields.

In the final communique issued after the summit, the leaders agreed on confirming their keenness to strengthen the strategic partnership between the Arab countries and China based on comprehensive cooperation and common development.

The summit between China and the Arab world was important because it indicated that the cooperation between the two sides has entered a new era, said Moneef Ammash Alharbi, a political analyst in Saudi Arabia.

“The Middle East is the central bank of energy … to have this kind of relation to set a certain example for the rest of the world, it will promote peace and security,” said Moneef.

Noting that the leaders agreed on reaffirming their countries’ firm commitment to the principles and purposes of the United Nations Charter and working to preserve the international order based on international law, Moneef said this is important because the Middle East is suffering as some nations are interfering in internal affairs and not respecting territorial sovereignty.

Srawut Aree, director of the Muslim Studies Center of Chulalongkorn University in Thailand, said he believes the United States will keep a close watch on China-Arab states’ cooperation in security.

Since the Cold War, the US has been the sole superpower in the Middle East, but there has been a lot of violence, wars and many other issues going on in the region for the past 20 to 30 years, said Srawut. “This is because of the US’ rule and intervention in the Middle East,” he said.

Srawut said China’s approach to the Middle East is solely based on the economic sphere, which is why the people in the region “are quite satisfied” with China’s role there.

China is the Arab states’ biggest trading partner. Two-way trade in 2021, at $330.3 billion, was 1.5 times more than the corresponding figure 10 years ago, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning noted on Dec 9.

Srawut said that besides cooperation on energy, it is also important to develop the synergies of the Belt and Road Initiative with Arab countries’ development initiatives such as Saudi Vision 2030.

On Dec 9, Xi also attended the China-GCC Summit, which yielded a host of tangible outcomes.

In his keynote speech, Xi pledged more energy deals, including for crude oil and liquefied natural gas, with the big Gulf oil producers, and urged the two sides to enhance cooperation in finance, investment, innovation, aerospace and culture.

During the summit between Xi, leaders of six Gulf states and GCC Secretary-General Nayef Falah Al-Hajraf, an action plan was adopted for strategic dialogue between China and the GCC from 2023 to 2027.

Mehran Kamrava, a professor of government at Georgetown University in Qatar, said the action plan is an indication of the growing importance of the Persian Gulf region on the one hand and of China’s more active global diplomacy on the other.

Gokhan Ereli, Gulf studies coordinator at the Center for Middle Eastern Studies in Turkiye, said the summit between China and the GCC countries stood out as one of the most comprehensive gatherings held in recent times.

China’s crude oil imports from the GCC grew 7.8 percent last year to 202 million metric tons, representing close to 40 percent of the nation’s such imports.

Xi’s state visit to Saudi Arabia ushered in a new era of bilateral relations. The two sides signed 20 cooperation agreements covering energy, investment, justice, education and media. Beijing agreed to include Saudi Arabia as one of the destinations for Chinese tourists on organized tours to expand bilateral people-to-people exchanges.

William Jones, a non-resident fellow at Renmin University of China’s Chongyang Institute for Financial Studies, wrote in a research note that Xi’s visit to Riyadh marked a step forward in Sino-Saudi relations.

“While much of the country-to-country interaction has been in the field of trade and investment, it has now broadened into a comprehensive strategic partnership,” he said.

Abdulaziz Ben Munif Ben Razin, consultant at the Center of Information and Arabian-Russian Studies in Riyadh, said, “The visit by Chinese President Xi is not only important to Saudi Arabia but also to the region and the world.”

Noting that China has proved it is a peaceful country through its attitude toward key international issues like the Russia-Ukraine conflict, Abdulaziz said he expects Xi’s visit to contribute to the security in the GCC region and beyond.

Nasser Al Jaryad, chairman of the Saudi National Committee of Workers’ Committees, said the summits will support regional development.

“Arab countries, especially the petroleum-producing countries, have invested in technology and the new economy and the future of work. That will help us to start our cooperation with China and how we can deal with the new future of our region and China,” Nasser said.

“The relationship between China and GCC countries is going very well, growing since 20 years ago,” said Amur Mohamed Alhajry, director general of the Council of Ministers of Labour and Council of Ministers of Social Affairs in GCC States Executive Bureau.

In 2004, China and the GCC launched negotiations on a free trade agreement, and Amur Mohamed said he hoped that leaders at these summits would further discuss the FTA. 

Anis Khayati, assistant professor of economics and finance at the University of Bahrain, said Arab countries need to benefit from Chinese technology and its investment in infrastructure to get rid of United States dominance, while China also needs a strategic partnership with the Arab world to further grow its economy.

China seeks to increase the market share of its products in Arab countries, foster investment opportunities and secure trade channels, because the 21 Arab countries, when combined, are a huge market with more than 430 million people, Khayati said. 

Redha Juma Al Saleh, former chairman of the Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said he believes there is a lot of potential for China-Arab cooperation in various areas such as agriculture, food security, logistics and tourism. 

Hissein Brahim Taha, secretary-general of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, who attended the China-Arab States Summit, said the event has given new impetus to the partnership between the two sides in serving their common interests.

Contact the writers at xuwei@chinadaily.com.cn