MBS welcomes China’s Xi with open arms in Riyadh

• Mohammed bin Salman hosted Xi Jinping.
• Saudi TV broadcast the event’s grandiose celebration.
• China-Arab States Summit “historic”

In preparation for a series of summits that will mark a “epoch-making milestone” in China’s relations with the Arab world, Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman hosted Chinese President Xi Jinping in the Saudi capital Riyadh on Thursday.

As MBS, the de facto ruler of the kingdom, welcomed the Chinese leader at Al-Yamamah Palace, Saudi official television aired a lavish ceremony set up for the occasion.

Saudi Royal Guard soldiers lined up with swords and played music while flags of China and Saudi Arabia were displayed throughout the area.

In contrast to the mood of US Vice President Joe Biden‘s visit to Saudi Arabia earlier this year, the two leaders grinned pleasantly and posed for pictures.

Xi arrived in Saudi Arabia’s capital city of Riyadh on Wednesday, where he was welcomed by Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah, the country’s foreign minister, and Prince Faisal bin Bandar bin Abdulaziz, the region’s governor.

The Chinese president’s flight was accompanied by Saudi military jets, and when he arrived, a purple carpet was laid out and canons were fired.

The China-Arab States Summit “will be an epoch-making milestone in the history of China-Arab ties,” according to the Chinese foreign ministry, and President Xi’s official visit to Saudi Arabia “will lift the China-Saudi Arabia comprehensive strategic partnership to a new height.”

It is widely believed that US Vice President Joe Biden’s reception was less lavish. The governor of Mecca and the Saudi ambassador to the US met with the US president in July in the Red Sea port city of Jeddah.

When Biden and MBS first met in Jeddah, their fist-bump made headlines around the world and helped to characterize what would ultimately be a chilly visit.

In the midst of strained relations between the two nations and Washington, which has a variety of complaints about the two governments’ oil production, human rights, and other concerns, Xi is in Saudi Arabia for a multi-day visit.

China and Saudi Arabia have a long history of friendship, but recently they seem to have grown closer as both countries face uncertain futures with the US.

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