ISTANBUL 

China seeks to boost ties with Saudi Arabia as Premier Li Qiang and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman held high-level talks in Riyadh on Wednesday.

Li arrived in the Saudi capital late Tuesday to co-chair the fourth Saudi-Chinese High-Level Committee with bin Salman.

The two sides are expected to engage in in-depth discussions to “strengthen friendship and expand cooperation,” according to a handout from Beijing.

Li hoped that Beijing and Riyadh would “further strengthen the alignment of their development strategies and elevate bilateral ties to a higher level.”

“Since the establishment of diplomatic relations 34 years ago, bilateral relations have achieved leapfrog development through joint efforts, yielding fruitful results in practical cooperation,” he said after arriving in Saudi Arabia.

Li recalled that Chinese President Xi Jinping attended the first China-Arab States Summit and the first China-Gulf Cooperation Council Summit in December 2022.

“For over a year, both sides have actively implemented the key outcomes of the summits… maintaining close communication and coordination on regional and international affairs, and continuously enhancing the China-Saudi Arabia comprehensive strategic partnership,” the Chinese premier said.

Ahead of Li’s trip to Riyadh, China delivered the largest offshore oil and gas platform it has ever built to Saudi Arabia.

The Marjan oil and gas collection and transportation platform weighs more than 17,200 tons and is taller than a 24-story building with a deck area equivalent to 15 basketball courts.

China is Saudi Arabia’s second-largest oil importer as the bilateral trade volume surged to around $106 billion last year.

Li’s visit is also the first high-level trip to Riyadh after China brokered a deal between Saudi Arabia and Iran in March last year to normalize bilateral ties.