Saudi-China relationship sets good example: diplomat

The friendly and cooperative relationship between Saudi Arabia and China sets a good example of international relations, as strengthening of cooperation between the two countries is not only in line with the trend of world development but also with the requirements of the times, said a top Saudi diplomat.

The visit of the Chinese president last December gave strong impetus to boosting Saudi-Chinese ties and bringing more prosperity to the two countries and the two peoples, said Abdulrahman bin Ahmed Al-Harbi, Saudi Arabia's ambassador to China, at the 93rd Saudi National Day Celebration held in Beijing on Wednesday.

"A number of agreements were signed during the visit, which have aligned with Saudi Arabia's Vision 2030 framework", said the ambassador.

"The two initiatives are really ambitious and their target is to bring more prosperity to the two countries and the peoples, and also to the Middle East region and the world," he told China Daily.

The ambassador said in the past year China and Saudi Arabia have witnessed great and outstanding achievements "in terms of annual growth in economic, trade, and investment relations".

China has remained Saudi Arabia's top trading partner, with bilateral trade hitting $116 billion in 2022, up 34 percent year-on-year. In the first quarter of 2023, bilateral trade surpassed $27 billion, up 9.7 percent compared with the same period last year, according to official data.

"And now we are working toward utilizing those great potential and opportunities being on both sides," he added.

Saudi Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources Bandar Alkhorayef said that China and Saudi Arabia have seen "a lot of giga projects took place signed by the two sides and we are working now in terms of both government and private sector on the direction of both leadership toward joining efforts in different fields including economic, culture and trade".

"We view China as a strong and trusted partner, we enjoy the relationship between Saudi Arabia and China both on political and also, more importantly, on the leadership level," he told China Daily.

In 2019, the two countries signed some 35 deals worth more than $28 billion, while in 2022, more than 40 agreements worth over $58 billion were signed.