The Saudi capital was bedecked with Chinese flags ahead of President Xi Jinping\u2019s visit on Wednesday that is likely to focus on energy ties but also follows months of tensions with the United States.
\nThe red-and-gold Chinese emblem alternated with the green flag of Saudi Arabia along major roads in Riyadh, while Xi was pictured on the front pages of newspapers that highlighted the trip\u2019s potential economic benefits.
\nChina, the world\u2019s second-biggest economy, is the top customer for oil from Saudi Arabia, the leading exporter of crude, and both sides appear keen to expand their relationship at a time of economic turmoil and geopolitical realignment.
\nThe three-day trip \u2014 only Xi\u2019s third overseas journey since the coronavirus pandemic began, and his first to Saudi Arabia since 2016 \u2014 comes after US President Joe Biden\u2019s visit in July, when he pleaded in vain for higher oil production.
\nIt will feature bilateral meetings with Saudi King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the de facto ruler, as well as a summit with the six-member Gulf Cooperation Council and a wider China-Arab summit.
\nThe programme represents the \u201clargest-scale diplomatic activity between China and the Arab world since the founding of the PRC\u201d, or People\u2019s Republic of China, foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said on Wednesday.
\nThe official Saudi Press Agency said the kingdom accounted for more than 20 percent of Chinese investment in the Arab world between 2005 and 2020, \u201cmaking it the biggest Arab country to receive Chinese investments during that period\u201d.
\nOil markets are expected to be a top agenda item for talks between China and Saudi Arabia, especially given the turbulence the markets have experienced since Russia invaded Ukraine in February.
\nThe G7 and European Union on Friday agreed to a $60 per barrel price cap on Russian oil in an attempt to deny the Kremlin war resources, injecting further uncertainty into the markets.
\nOn Sunday, the Opec+ oil cartel led jointly by Saudi Arabia and Russia opted to keep in place production cuts of two million barrels per day approved in October.
\nSaudi and Chinese officials have provided scant information about the agenda, though Ali Shihabi, a Saudi analyst close to the government, said he expected \u201ca number of agreements to be signed\u201d.
\nBeyond energy, analysts say leaders from the two countries will likely discuss potential deals that could see Chinese firms become more deeply involved in mega-projects that are central to Prince Mohammed\u2019s vision of diversifying the Saudi economy away from oil.
\nThey include a futuristic $500 billion megacity known as Neom, a so-called cognitive city that will depend heavily on facial recognition and surveillance technology.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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