BEIJING • Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman arrived in Beijing yesterday as he aims to seal partnerships on a high-profile Asia tour following a diplomatic crisis over a journalist’s brutal murder..
BEIJING • Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman arrived in Beijing yesterday as he aims to seal partnerships on a high-profile Asia tour following a diplomatic crisis over a journalist’s brutal murder.
Prince Mohammed is expected to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping on his trip, following visits to Pakistan and India.
The tour has allowed the royal to show that Riyadh still has allies after the grisly murder last year of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi – a fierce critic of the Crown Prince – at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul tarnished the Prince’s image as well as the kingdom’s.
The Chinese Foreign Ministry said Beijing’s ambitious Belt and Road global trade infrastructure initiative will be on the agenda during the Prince’s two-day visit, as the two countries look to improve their economic ties.
« Saudi Arabia has a lot of capital that needs to find profitable places to be deployed, » Saudi Energy and Industry Minister Khalid bin Abdulaziz Al-Falih told China’s official Xinhua news agency.
