Chinese president arrives in Saudi Arabia on Mideast tour

A Chinese president has not visited Saudi Arabia since 2009 when Hu Jintao went, and Jiang Zemin was the last Chinese president to visit Iran, going in 2002. “And the kingdom appreciates your efforts towards this”, Salman told Xi, according to SPA.

Xi Jinping will meet Iran rivals Saudi Arabia and Egypt to discuss bilateral ties. On the other hand, though, China isn’t the only country looking to capitalize on new access to Iran’s markets, meaning Beijing could lose a privileged position as European companies seek to enter the game.

When he visits Riyadh this weekend, Kerry must assure nervous Saudi leaders that that statement remains true in the wake of the unprecedented recent cooperation between Washington and Tehran.

Xi arrived three days after a historic worldwide deal lifted sanctions on Iran in return for a scaling back of its nuclear capabilities.

The trip may show China playing a more hands-on peacemaking role as the Syrian conflict exports violence around the world, regional powers quarrel along sectarian lines and USA influence wanes.

“Iran recruits militias in Iraq, Lebanon, Syria, and Yemen”, the official said, further accusing Iran of supporting “terrorism” and carrying out assassinations.

Xi’s visit is the latest in a diplomatic flurry of visits to Riyadh this week, including Pakistan’s prime minister on Monday, France’s foreign minister Tuesday and the U.S. Secretary of State Saturday.

Nawaz Sharif said that Saudi Arabia and Iran are aware about the potential threat of terrorism.

The fact of the matter is that China is slowly and gradually increasing its economic and political role in the region, and it seems likely in the near future that China could be play an important and leading political role along with other regional players such as the US, Russia, France and Britain.

That is also a main concern of Gulf leaders, who argue that Iran will use the billions of dollars it is receiving from the lifting of sanctions to continue supporting the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

China buys large amounts of oil from both states, and says it does not want to take sides in a bitter dispute over Riyadh’s execution of a Shia cleric. “China has been maintaining friendly relations with Middle East countries, but beware, China is not a conciliator”.

At the same time, Riyadh has been deepening ties with major powers beyond its traditional ally Washington, which it sees as insufficiently engaged in the region, particularly in the face of alleged Iranian interference. But the Chinese president’s visit to the region was planned a year ago, and diplomatic sources are very optimistic about his visit.

Xi’s predecessor Hu Jintao visited the kingdom in 2009.