RIYADH, Saudi Arabia — The Chinese leader will travel to Saudi Arabia on Wednesday for a series of summits bringing together heads of state from across the Middle East, a region where longtime US allies are growing closer to China.
Chinese President Xi Jinping will visit the kingdom for three days and attend the Saudi China, Gulf China and Arab China summits, the Saudi state news agency reported Tuesday. More than 30 heads of state and leaders of international organizations plan to attend, the report said, adding that Saudi Arabia and China were expected to sign a “strategic partnership.”
The visit of Mr. Xi to Saudi Arabia is focused on strengthening China’s decades-old ties with the Gulf region, which began as an effort to secure oil, and have since developed into a complex relationship involving arms sales, technology transfers and infrastructure projects.
The Chinese leader is expected to sign a series of contracts with the Saudi government and other Gulf states, sending a signal that Beijing’s influence in the region is growing at a time when Washington has withdrawn from the Middle East to focus more attention to Asia.
The grand state visit will inevitably generate comparisons The arrival of Donald J. Trump in the Saudi capitalRiyadh, for his first trip abroad as president in 2017. He was greeted by streets decorated with American flags and a huge image of his face projected onto the side of a building.
Saudi Arabia has been a close American ally for more than half a century. But the authoritarian rulers have long tried to deepen other alliances to prepare for an emerging multipolar world.
US-Saudi ties have been particularly difficult in recent years, with President Biden’s administration declaring a “reassessment” of the relationship and pressuring the kingdom over human rights abuses, including the 2018 murder of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi – then a Saudi citizen and US resident — by Saudi agents in Istanbul.
“Xi clearly wants to make a statement at a time when relations between the United States and Saudi Arabia are tense,” said James Dorsey, a senior fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore.
“It is a good time to plant the flag again, if you wish. And I think it’s a good time for the Gulf States to say, ‘Hey, we have other options. Washington, you’re not the only one out there.’”
This is an evolving story. Check back later for updates.
Vivian Nereim reported from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and David Pierson from Singapore.