Chinese President Xi Jinping landed in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia, on Wednesday to attend three key summits and meet with King Salman to strengthen bilateral relations with the Gulf country.
Xi was received at King Khalid International Airport by Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan al Saud, as well as the governor of the province, Faisal bin Bandar al Saud and other senior officials, according to SPA news agency.
The Chinese president, who has traveled at the invitation of King Salman of Saudi Arabia, with whom he will meet from Thursday, will attend three key summits to strengthen relations between Beijing and the various Arab countries.
As part of his three-day official visit to the country, Saudi Arabia and China are expected to sign more than 20 agreements worth 29.3 billion (27.8 billion euros), the Saudi Gazette newspaper reported.
China has close diplomatic ties with Saudi Arabia, as it is Beijing’s largest oil supplier. The visit comes after member countries of the expanded format of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC+) decided to maintain current production after the EU capped Russian crude at $60 (€57).
