Saudi Arabia sends top level delegation to WEF 'Summer Davos' in China

Six ministers and vice-ministers from the kingdom will travel to Tianjin at a time when China-Saudi relations are witnessing a 'honeymoon period'

Saudi Arabia will send one of the largest official delegations to this week’s “Summer Davos” meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) in China, as Beijing expands its ties with the kingdom and re-opens its economy after years of Covid-19 related lockdowns, the Financial Times reported on 26 June.

The Saudi delegation will include six ministers and vice-ministers, including Economy and Planning Minister Faisal Alibrahim and Communications and Information Technology Minister Abdullah Alswaha, at the first in-person WEF event in China in three years.

Saudi Arabia is China’s biggest oil supplier, and China is the kingdom’s top trading partner, with bilateral trade of $116 billion in 2022.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is seeking to diversify the country’s oil-dominated economy into areas such as health, infrastructure, the digital economy, and tourism under an initiative known as Vision 2030.

Chinese entrepreneurs have flocked to Saudi Arabia recently to take advantage of these opportunities.

“We are witnessing the honeymoon period of [the] China-Saudi relationship,” said an attendee at a recent Arab-China business forum.

The strength of Saudi-China ties was also illustrated by a Beijing-brokered deal in March that saw the kingdom reach a reconciliation deal with its long-time regional rival, Iran.

This week’s WEF meeting in Tianjin will be held under the title of "Entrepreneurship: The Driving Force of the Global Economy."

Klaus Schwab, WEF founder, and executive chairman, said in April that the world is experiencing deep systemic and structural economic, geopolitical, and technological transformations challenging traditional patterns.

"To master this transformation process and to create a more sustainable, more resilient, and more cohesive world requires entrepreneurship and cooperation," Schwab said.

The WEF has come under increased scrutiny following the announcement of an agenda known as the “Great Reset” shortly after the emergence of Covid-19 in 2020.

Critics suggest the WEF seeks to use the Covid-19 crisis to rearrange the economic relations advantageous to the billionaire elites that comprise the group. As Covid-19 emerged, the WEF has promoted controversial policies such as lockdowns, mandatory mass vaccination, digital IDs, central bank digital currencies, and the elimination of fossil fuels, which are essential for developing nation economies seeking to reduce poverty.

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