JEDDAH, 22 January 2006 — Saudi businessmen pin great hopes on the four-nation Asian tour of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah, which will take him to Asian giants China, India, Malaysia and Pakistan. They believe the visits would strengthen economic and trade ties with the four countries.
Abdullah leaves Riyadh today for Beijing on the first leg of the landmark tour. This is the Saudi ruler’s first state visit outside the region since he ascended the throne in August 2005 and the first by a Saudi king to China since the two countries established diplomatic relations in 1990. He will be accompanied by a group of prominent Saudi businessmen.
Abdul Rahman Al-Jeraisy, chairman of the Riyadh Chamber of Commerce and Industry and president of the Saudi-Chinese Business Council, said the royal visit would help strengthen strategic relations with the four countries. “The visit will open new horizons to establish joint investment projects and increase non-oil Saudi exports to these countries,” he said.
Saudi Arabia has already offered investment projects worth $624 billion to foreign investors in the vital sectors of petrochemicals, gas, electric power generation, telecommunications, desalination and railways. It has also softened regulations to woo foreign investors.
During his three-day visit to China, King Abdullah will hold talks with President Hu Jintao on major regional and international political issues, most importantly Iraq and Palestine, as well as ways of strengthening bilateral cooperation. Saudi Arabia is China’s main oil supplier; Beijing imports 14 percent of its total oil requirements from the Kingdom.
“The Chinese government places great importance on this visit,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Kong Quan said. The visit comes at a time when Saudi-Chinese trade relations have hit their peak with two-way trade reaching $14.5 billion in the first 11 months of 2005. A group of Saudi companies intends to set up an SR6.6 billion petrochemical complex in Jubail with a Chinese partner. The plant will produce two million tons of basic petrochemicals annually.
King Abdullah will arrive in New Delhi on Jan. 24, on the second leg of his tour, and will be the chief guest at India’s Republic Day celebrations on Jan. 26. The royal visit, first by a Saudi king in 50 years, reflects the growing relations between the two Asian giants. Riyadh meets 32 percent of India’s total oil imports.
More than 1.6 million Indian expatriates working in Saudi Arabia look forward to Abdullah’s visit with great anticipation. According to Ashok Kumar, Indian consul for commercial affairs in Jeddah, there are 82 Saudi-Indian joint ventures in the Kingdom, some of them wholly owned by Indian investors. He said Indian companies are involved in Saudi industrial, infrastructure, energy, pharmaceutical and other projects worth $500 million.
King Abdullah will be in Malaysia on Jan. 29 and in Pakistan on Feb. 1 on the last legs of his tour to promote political, economic and cultural ties with the two Muslim countries.
According to Malaysian Ambassador Ismail Haji Ibrahim, King Abdullah and Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi will discuss ways of promoting bilateral trade and joint ventures and cooperation in higher education. The Saudi-Malaysian Business Council will give a lunch in honor of the Saudi king and his delegation.
Pakistani Ambassador Abdul Aziz Mirza said Abdullah’s talks in Islamabad would focus on major international issues and the fight against terrorism.
