TOKYO, Dec 7 (KUNA) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping will attend the first China-Arab States Summit and the China-GCC Summit in Riyadh and pay a state visit to Saudi Arabia this week, the Foreign Ministry announced Wednesday.
Xi's four-day visit to the kingdom, starting from Wednesday, will be at the invitation of Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, the ministry said in a statement, without giving further details.
According to state-run Xinhua News Agency, Xi's visit to Saudi Arabia in 2016 mutually beneficial cooperation between China and Saudi Arabia has borne rich fruits, with two-way trade volume hitting USD 87 billion in 2021, up 30.1 percent year on year. In the broader region, China's trade volume with the Arab states stood at some USD 330 billion in 2021, a year-on-year increase of 37 percent last year.
"China is willing to work with Arab countries to enhance mutual support and expand cooperation in a joint effort to build a China-Arab community with a shared future for the new era, so as to create a bright future for China-Arab relations and make contributions to world peace and development," Xi was quoted as saying in a congratulatory message on the 31st Arab League Summit on Nov. 1.(end) mk.nhq