RIYADH: GCC countries will seek to improve cooperation with China and look forward to a new phase of partnership, leaders said at the GCC-China summit held in Riyadh on Friday.
On behalf of His Majesty Sultan Haitham bin Tarik, HH Sayyid Fahd bin Mahmood al Said, Deputy Prime Minister for the Council of Ministers, is heading Oman's delegation at the 43rd GCC Summit, and the GCC-Chinese Summit for Cooperation and Development as well as the Arab-Chinese Summit for Cooperation and Development.
Chinese President Xi Jinping also said the summit would “lead to a brighter future,” adding that China sought “comprehensive cooperation” with Arab states to serve Chinese-Arab mutual interests.
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman said the summit reflected the common desire to strengthen Gulf-Chinese cooperation.
He said the GCC countries discussed with China the establishment of a Chinese-Gulf free trade zone.
China and states of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) are natural partners for cooperation, Xi said.
"China will continue to import large quantities of crude oil from GCC countries, expand imports of liquefied natural gas, strengthen cooperation in upstream oil and gas development, engineering services, storage, transportation and refining, and make full use of the Shanghai Petroleum and National Gas Exchange as a platform to carry out yuan settlement of oil and gas trade," he said.
In his speech, Xi proposed other areas for cooperation in the next three to five years, including finance and investment, innovation and new technologies, as well as aerospace, and language and cultures.
"China is willing to carry out financial regulatory cooperation with GCC countries, facilitate GCC enterprises to enter China's capital market, establish a joint investment association with GCC, support sovereign wealth funds of both sides to cooperate in various forms," Xi said.
"The GCC countries are interested in working side by side with the People's Republic of China to explore practical ways to address global challenges, including food security and improving the integration of global supply chains and energy security. The GCC states affirm that they will continue their role as a reliable source to meet the energy needs of the world and the People's Republic of China, " said Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in his speech.
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