Chinese president visits Saudi Arabia to restore its global profile

Riyadh: Chinese President Xi Jinping is visiting Saudi Arabia and attending regional summits in an effort to boost economic growth. In China, strict measures imposed to fight Covid-19 have led to a steady economic decline.

Kingdom's foreign ministry said Xi will be attending the inaugural China-Arab States Summit on Wednesday. He will meet with leaders of the six nations that make up the Gulf Cooperation Council. The visit will end on Saturday. He would have visited over 30 heads of state and business leaders in three days.

Half of China's oil is imported from Saudi Arabia which amounts to tens of billions of dollars every year. Over the decades, both authoritarian powers have corporated based on oil sales. It has now become a bilateral trade accounting for around $90 billion a year. Xi's visit to Saudi Arabia has raised alarms in Washington as both nations share governing tendencies the West disapproves of.

Riyadh has been lately stepping up as a global voice and Beijing is already its biggest trading partner. The Kingdom is also a member of China's belt and road global infrastructure plan. Referring to US President Joe Biden's unsuccessful visit to Saudi Arabia, an official told The Guardian: "We have said for a long time that there are more people to dine with than Washington. That message will be very clear when this visit gets underway. The Chinese do not lecture and they don't disrespect. They know how to do business. The Americans on the other hand have wanted us to choose sides. We will not."