On the 7th (local time), Saudi Arabia provided Chinese President Xi Jinping, who visited the country as a state guest, with a special ceremony using fighter jets.
According to the People's Daily, the official newspaper of the Chinese Communist Party, four Saudi Air Force jets escorted the plane carrying President Xi into Saudi airspace.
Then, when the private plane entered the sky over the capital Riyadh, the People's Daily reported that six ceremonial escort aircraft 'Saudi Hawks' flew together with the private plane.
The reception at the Riyadh airport was said to have included Prince Faisal bin Bandar Al Saud, head of the Riyadh region, Prince Faisal bin Farhan al Saud, foreign minister, Yasir al-Rumayan, minister in charge of affairs with China, and other key members of the royal family and senior officials. Introduced by People's Daily.
"In the 32 years since the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Saudi Arabia, the strategic mutual trust between the two sides has been continuously consolidated, and practical cooperation in each field has yielded many results," Xi said in a written speech announced upon arrival.
"We will exchange in-depth views with King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on bilateral relations and international and regional issues of common interest, and plan together the direction for the development of China-Saudi relations," Xi said. .
Xi's trip to Saudi Arabia was accompanied by top leadership, Central Political Bureau Standing Committee member Ding Xuexiang, Central Political Bureau member and Foreign Minister Wang Yi, and Central Political Bureau member Heifeng.
(Photo = Shinhwa, Yonhap News)