Saudi cooperation with China does not imply non-cooperation with the US,

Riyadh: Saudi Arabia has informed that its cooperation with China is necessary as China is the second largest economy after the US, and it does not imply moving away from the US. Saudi Arabia has clarified that they are open to cooperating with any country. It came after discussions started that Saudi Arabia is moving away from the US by signing a billion dollars deal with China.

In June, General Kenneth McKenzie, head of the US Naval Command, had advised China to stay away from the Middle East. McKenzie had warned that China and Russia are likely to take advantage of the dwindling influence of the US over the Middle East. He alleged that China would use its credit line along with the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) to establish its influence in the Middle East.

With the visit of Chinese Premier Xi Jinping to Saudi Arabia two days back, the fears of the US have started to turn into reality. China signed 34 agreements worth 30 billion dollars with Saudi Arabia in areas of energy, defence, trade, and technology. Saudi Arabia had initiated two big meetings, the Arab-China and Gulf-China, which were held during this time. China announced work in Yuan with the Arab countries during these meetings. So far, the US has maintained its influence on Saudi Arabia and other Middle Eastern countries but started feeling restless with Xi Jinping’s recent visit. The optics during the meeting of Saudi Arabia’s Prince Mohammed bin Salman welcoming Xi Jinping was the talking point, which also triggered comparison in the US media of the recent visit of President Biden to Saudi Arabia. Although the Biden administration has not yet commented on this, the US media has highlighted this news.

With this backdrop, Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister, Faisal bin Farhan has clarified that Saudi Arabia has strategic cooperation with the US, India, China, Japan, and Germany. However, Saudi Arabia has mutual interests, especially with the US and China. Hence, Saudi Arabia will not polarize its policy in favour of any one country.

Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister, Faisal bin Farhan said that the economy of Saudi Arabia is gaining momentum, and they expect cooperation with all. At the same time, he said Saudi Arabia is free to establish cooperation with all countries. Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan claimed that cooperation with China has been going on since 2004, and this is not the first instance of it. Even so, the US perceives the recent cooperation and agreements as a challenge to them. The rift between the US and Saudi Arabia is widening over the past few months. The US media has highlighted the widening rift using the context of the latest China-Saudi Arabia strategic cooperation.

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