Sébastien Le Belzic (in Beijing), edited by Laura Laplaud 11:04 a.m., December 07, 2022
Chinese President Xi Jinping arrives in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday for a three-day visit, the first to the oil kingdom since 2016. Sign of a rapprochement between the communist regime and the Gulf oil monarchies, he is expected to meet the leaders of 14 Arab countries and the Gulf.
China goes hunting for oil.
Chinese President Xi Jinping arrives in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday for a three-day visit, the first in the oil kingdom since 2016. A trip giving the sign of a rapprochement between the communist regime and the oil monarchies of the Gulf.
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Xi Jinping's Most Important Journey
For the official Chinese press, this is President Xi Jinping's most important trip this year.
So obviously, we're going to talk about oil: China is the biggest consumer in the world and Saudi Arabia the biggest producer.
China buys a quarter of Saudi oil exports.
A political visit
But this official visit by the Chinese president is also political.
It comes just after that of Joe Biden and Emmanuel Macron, but this time there is no risk of addressing the issues that annoy.
"For the Saudis of course there is no risk that Xi Jinping will address the issue of the murdered journalist or what they are doing in Yemen and on the other side, no risk for Xi Jinping of being told about Xinjiang , Hong Kong or Taiwan, so it's the choice of a safe place," said Graeme Smith, a China expert at the University of the Pacific.
It is also Riyadh's choice of a counterweight to American influence in the region.
China participates in the development of Saudi military programs.
Chinese arms sales to the kingdom have increased by almost 400% over the past five years.