China and Saudi Arabia formally established diplomatic relations on July 21, 1990. This was the result of both countries actively opening up to the outside world and integrating into the international community. Saudi Arabia seeks diversified development, and China needs to expand cooperation, the two sides complement each other and the prospects for cooperation are very broad.

Saudi Arabia has a land area of more than two million square kilometers and a population of 35 million. It is rich in oil.

With the continuous exchange of high-level visits between the two countries, cooperation between China and Saudi Arabia in various fields has continued to bear fruits. By 2001, Saudi Arabia had become China’s largest trading partner in the Middle East.

Former President Hu Jintao visited Saudi Arabia in 2006 and 2009 respectively. Saudi King Abdullah visited China in 2006 and King Salman visited China in 2017. Crown Prince Mohammed visited China in 2019. These visits put the development of China-Saudi Arabian relations on the fast track. When President Xi visited Saudi Arabia in 2016, China and Saudi Arabia established a comprehensive strategic partnership. The cooperation between the two sides have expanded from economic and trade exchanges, which mainly focus on oil trade, to pragmatic cooperation in infrastructure, energy, information and communication and manufacturing. This was mainly due to the fact that Saudi Arabia also hopes to diversify its development.

Last year, under the influence of the Covid-19pandemic, bilateral trade between China and Saudi Arabia still increased by 30% year-on-year, which fully demonstrated the resilience and potential of economic and trade cooperation between the two countries, Chinese Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Chen Weiqing said at the 32nd anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Saudi Arabia. “China-Saudi Arabia relations have always maintained healthy, stable and strong development, mainly thanks to the concepts and principles that the two countries jointly follow.”

China and Saudi Arabia have always adhered to the principle of mutual respect in politics, mutual benefit and win-win results in economy, and pursued independent diplomacy with the outside world. China firmly supports Saudi Arabia in independently exploring a political system and development path suited to its own national conditions, opposes interference by external forces in Saudi Arabia’s internal affairs, and actively supports and participates in Saudi Arabia’s realization of Vision 2030. Saudi Arabia has always adhered to the one-China principle and firmly supported China’s legitimate position on Taiwan-related and Xinjiang-related issues. On issues such as democracy and human rights, both countries cherish the realization of common values for all mankind and firmly oppose the use of relevant issues as a pretext for interfering in the internal affairs of other countries, said Ambassador Chen.

In 2013, China proposed the “Belt and Road” initiative, vigorously promoting infrastructure construction in countries along the route, and injecting new momentum into world economic growth. At present, China’s non-financial direct investment in countries along the Belt and Road exceeds US$140 billion. Saudi Arabia is one of the first countries to support and participate in the joint construction of the “Belt and Road”, and the cooperation between the two sides has been deepening under this framework. In 2016, Crown Prince Mohammed put forward the “Vision 2030” to vigorously promote the diversified transformation of the Saudi economy, and made remarkable progress, and more and more products labeled “Made in Saudi” were launched. China’s manufacturing output value ranks first in the world, and its technical level in 5G, artificial intelligence, nuclear energy, renewable energy, aerospace and other fields is among the world’s first. Therefore, China can be an important partner for Saudi Arabia in achieving Vision 2030. China can provide Saudi Arabia with technical support in many aspects. Saudi Arabia could provide energy for China.

China and Saudi Arabia pursue an independent foreign policy and stand for upholding the international order based on the Charter of the United Nations and international law. President Xi Jinping put forward the Global Security Initiative, calling for adhering to the common, comprehensive, cooperative and sustainable security concept, respecting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries, non-interference in the internal affairs of other countries, and respecting the development path and social system independently chosen by the people of all countries.

King Salman said at the 76th session of the UN General Assembly: Saudi Arabia has always followed the principles and resolutions based on international law, respected the territorial sovereignty of all countries, and firmly opposed interference in the internal affairs of other countries. Both China and Saudi Arabia firmly support multilateralism and free trade, and actively integrate into the process of economic globalization.

China and Saudi Arabia have maintained good communication and cooperation on multilateral platforms such as the WTO and the G20, and jointly played a constructive role in promoting international trade and investment and maintaining the stability of the global industrial chain and supply chain. Since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, China and Saudi Arabia have jointly advocated the international community to unite to fight the pandemic and overcome difficulties together, and as the world’s largest oil importer and exporter, China and Saudi Arabia have jointly committed to maintaining the stability of the global energy market,said Ambassador Chen.

In April this year, President Xi Jinping spoke by phone with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed and pointed out that China has given priority to the development of relations with Saudi Arabia. China will continue to promote the alignment of the Belt and Road Initiative with Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 and create a high-level cooperation pattern in energy, economy and trade, and high-tech between the two countries. China supports Saudi Arabia’s “Green Middle East” initiative and welcomes Saudi Arabia to join the global development initiative. China is willing to work with Saudi Arabia to promote peace and stability in the Middle East and promote the early conclusion of the China-GCC Free Trade Area Agreement.

Mohammed said that China is an important comprehensive strategic partner of Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia attaches great importance to the development of relations with China and firmly abides by the one-China principle. Saudi Arabia is willing to strengthen high-level exchanges with China, sign the agreement on Saudi Arabia’s “Vision 2030” and jointly build the “Belt and Road”, and deepen cooperation in economic and trade, transportation, infrastructure, energy and other fields. Saudi Arabia is willing to strengthen communication and coordination with China in international and regional affairs, support China’s just position on major international and regional issues, and support the League of Arab States and the GCC in strengthening cooperation with China.

Overall, China and Saudi Arabia have great prospects in future cooperation in various fields especially in energy, trade, infrastructure construction, IT and many other areas.