The twelve-day tour by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah to China, India, Malaysia and Pakistan marks, apart from strengthening ties with old friends, the next step in the Kingdom’s engagement with the globalized economy on the heels of its accession to the World Trade Organization last year. This first trip by the king since he came to the throne in August was much more than ceremonial. The royal party contained eleven ministers as well as a large delegation of businessmen. The talks in each country therefore combined politics with business.
The significance will not have been lost on Chinese President Hu Jintao’s government that China was the first country that King Abdullah chose to visit. China needs Saudi oil — at the current rate of production her own proven reserves will be used up within 20 years. But as its international political role expands with its economy, it also needs good relations with the Middle East where the Kingdom’s role is pivotal. In its turn, we need Chinese enterprises to help in the ambitious new infrastructural and industrial development that is now gathering pace. Thus the range of agreements signed in Beijing, including a groundbreaking deal to expand cooperation over oil, natural gas and minerals, is highly significant. Likewise, the inking of a Saudi loan to improve infrastructure in the city of Aksu in China’s oil-rich Xinjiang region presages a growing role for Saudi investors in China.
When the royal party moved to India, the economic agenda was very similar and the opportunities no less glittering — between them, China and India have a third of the world’s population. Fifteen commercial agreements were signed including another significant energy pact. The king also used his best offices to encourage talks on the resolution of the Kashmir issue with Pakistan, which has so distorted relations between these two nuclear neighbors.
In Malaysia the royal party’s reception was no less warm and talks with Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi and his ministers included agreements on bilateral trade and cooperation in a variety of fields, including health, where a deal for a hospital in Madinah was signed.
Perhaps, however, the most outstanding welcome came on the final leg of the trip when the king and his party reached Pakistan. The capital Islamabad was in a festive mood with hundreds of thousands of Pakistanis lining the streets to greet the royal motorcade. Once again, long months of background work by officials in both states were rewarded with the signing of agreements and memoranda of understanding. But, as in Malaysia, discussions also turned to Islam and its relations with the rest of the world. Following its successful summit in Makkah, both leaders discussed restructuring the 57-member Organization of the Islamic Conference to make it an effective voice of the Islamic world.
Many important seeds have been sown by this groundbreaking trip, the fruits of which should quickly become apparent.
