China’s Li, Saudi Crown Prince Discuss Cooperation in Riyadh Meeting

Reuters

13:09 JST, September 12, 2024

BEIJING/DUBAI (Reuters) – Chinese Premier Li Qiang and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman discussed cooperation in several sectors including energy, investment and trade in a meeting in Riyadh on Wednesday, the Saudi state news agency SPA reported.

Earlier, Li had urged Beijing and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), which includes Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, to accelerate free trade negotiations.

Li made his remarks in a meeting in Riyadh with GCC Secretary General Jasem al-Budaiwi, Chinese state news agency Xinhua said.

SPA reported that al-Budaiwi had stressed the importance of moving forward and finalizing the trade talks in the “near future.”

The free trade negotiations have stalled over concerns by Saudi Arabia about cheap Chinese imports, with sources telling Reuters in May that the talks were at an impasse.

Saudi Arabia is worried that a wave of lower cost Chinese versions of products that it hopes to manufacture domestically would be damaging to its industrial agenda, the sources said.

China and the GCC, which also includes Qatar, Kuwait, Oman and Bahrain, started free trade negotiations nearly 20 years ago.

Li said the two sides should further expand the scale of bilateral trade, deepen cooperation in fields from oil and gas, petrochemicals and infrastructure to emerging fields such as new energy and the green economy, according to a statement from China’s Foreign Ministry.

Saudi Arabia is willing to work closely with China on multilateral affairs to maintain peace, security and stability in the region and globally, Li said according to the Ministry.

Li arrived in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday evening where he will meet UAE Vice President and Prime Minister Mohammed, the Foreign Ministry said.