As China faces sanctions from the West, it looks to the Middle East for alliance and influence
- Foreign Minister Wang Yi thanks Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman for Saudi support on Xinjiang and Hong Kong
- Beijing’s relationship with Riyadh may be complicated by its close ties with Iran
“The sanctions imposed by a few Western countries on China over the Xinjiang-related issues based on elaborately fabricated lies are blatant interference in China’s internal affairs which aims to suppress and contain China,” Wang told Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, according to China’s foreign ministry. “Such acts should be jointly rejected by all other countries.”
“Saudi Arabia is an important strategic partner of China and advancing bilateral ties remains a priority for China’s Middle East policies,” Wang was quoted as telling the crown prince.
According to Wu Sike, China’s former ambassador to Saudi Arabia, although Riyadh was the last Arab country to establish formal ties with Beijing in 1990, bilateral cooperation has expanded rapidly – including on energy, infrastructure, technology, security and human rights.
China is Saudi Arabia’s top trading partner and biggest oil buyer. According to the Chinese government data, Saudi Arabia, the world’s biggest oil exporter, overtook Russia to become China’s top crude supplier last year despite the coronavirus pandemic and global economic downturn.
Li Chengwen, another former Chinese ambassador to Riyadh, said in an article published this month that Washington’s policy shift, especially its attempt to isolate the powerful crown prince, might induce changes in the Saudi attitude towards the US and further complicate the Middle East situation.
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In contrast, in recent years, China has openly embraced the controversial crown prince, who during a visit to Beijing in 2019 met President Xi Jinping and secured lucrative trade agreements totalling US$28 billion. Xi told Salman that China was a “good friend and partner to Saudi Arabia”, while the crown prince voiced support for the Belt and Road Initiative and China’s counterterrorism efforts in Xinjiang.
During his meeting with Wang Yi on Wednesday, Salman spoke highly of China’s “conducive role” in maintaining global peace and stability and pledged to boost anti-terrorism and security cooperation with Beijing, according to the statement posted online by the Chinese foreign ministry.
“Saudi Arabia firmly supports China’s legitimate position on the issues related to Xinjiang and Hong Kong, opposes interfering in China’s internal affairs under any pretext and rejects the attempt by certain parties to sow dissension between China and the Islamic world,” he was quoted as saying.
While traditional American allies may face the almost impossible decision to pick sides in the intensifying rivalry between China and the US, Beijing also needs to strike a delicate balance in fostering better relations with both Iran and Saudi Arabia.
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“How far Beijing’s relations with Tehran would go may largely depend on the future of US-China relations. China, at the same time, would also have to be very sensitive to how other regional powers, particularly Saudi Arabia and Israel, see China’s closeness to Iran,” he said.