Chinese president Xi Jinping landed in Riyadh on Wednesday to meet leaders from the kingdom and Arab countries, as Beijing boosts its ties to a region viewed by Washington as within its sphere of influence.
Xi was met at the airport by the governor of Riyadh and other officials. He will attend Gulf and Arab summits during the three-day visit.
The visit, Xi’s first since 2016, comes as the kingdom’s relationship with Washington is strained over oil production cuts and just months after President Joe Biden vowed in a speech during his visit to Saudi Arabia that the US would not leave a vacuum in the Middle East to be filled by China, Russia, and Iran.