While working together on oil and security problems, Saudi Arabia and China will not meddle in one another's internal affairs.

 On December 9, 2022, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, during the China-Arab summit, Chinese President Xi Jinping shakes hands with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

In a joint statement released on Friday, China and Saudi Arabia said their policies were in line in a number of sectors, including security and energy, and that they would support one another without meddling in one another's internal affairs.

The accord comes while Chinese President Xi Jinping is in the kingdom and as relations between the United States and both nations are already strained due to disagreements over human rights violations, oil production, and other matters.

The roughly 4,000-word joint statement, which was released by the official Saudi Press Agency (SPA), declared agreement on a number of complex international issues, such as energy, security, Iran's nuclear program, the crisis in Yemen, and Russia's conflict with Ukraine.

Beijing and Riyadh both wanted to emphasize "the importance of stability in the world oil markets," pointing out that Saudi Arabia is a dependable supplier of crude oil to their joint partner in China. Additionally, they indicated a desire to "expand cooperation and coordination in defense domains" and to keep working together to "combat terrorism and its financing."

At King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on December 7, 2022, President of the People's Republic of China Xi Jinping (C) is greeted by Emir of Riyadh Faisal bin Bende bin Abdulaziz (L) and Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan (R).

Nothing counts more when China and Saudi Arabia meet than oil

The nations pledged to "continue firmly supporting each other's core interests, support each other in maintaining their sovereignty and territorial integrity, and exert joint efforts to defend the principle of non-interference in states' internal affairs, rules of international law, and basic principles of international relations," according to the statement.

This would entail refraining from disparaging one another's internal policies, most likely including those pertaining to domestic law and human rights.

Without providing any additional information, China also reaffirmed its "resistance to any activities that would intervene in the internal affairs of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia."

Both nations have received harsh criticism for their treatment of human rights, and Washington has previously taken action against what it saw to be numerous cases of abuse and violations of human rights committed by both China and Saudi Arabia.

The State Department estimates that since 2017, up to two million Uyghurs and members of other ethnic groups have been detained in a shadowy network of internment camps where they are reportedly "subjected to torture, cruel and inhumane treatment such as physical and sexual abuse, forced labor, and death." Chinese officials have consistently denied all claims of human rights abuses. In June, the US banned all goods produced in China's western Xinjiang region.

And in 2021, a US intelligence report said that Mohammed bin Salman (also known as MBS), the de facto ruler of Saudi Arabia, had a direct hand in the operation that resulted in the killing and dismemberment of Jamal Khashoggi, a journalist for the Washington Post. MBS refuted the charges.

Xi arrived in Riyadh, the capital of oil-rich Saudi Arabia, on Wednesday to begin a multi-day visit to the country. On Thursday, MBS and other Saudi authorities lavishly welcomed Xi. The Chinese president's flight was accompanied by Saudi military jets, and when he arrived, a purple carpet was laid out and canons were fired. According to Saudi state TV, Xi invited Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud to travel to China on Friday.

A "Saudi-Chinese summit," a China-Arab, and a China-Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) summit are among the events that Xi will attend during his visit, according to SPA.

A comprehensive strategic cooperation agreement between China and Saudi Arabia was signed on Thursday. It comprises a number of agreements and memoranda of understanding, including ones on hydrogen energy and the coordination of the kingdom's Vision 2030 with China's Belt and Road Initiative.

Left to right: Mohammed Bin Salman and Xi Jinping.

MBS of Saudi Arabia extends the red carpet to Xi of China as a not-so-subtle message to Biden.

The chilly atmosphere that surrounded US President Joe Biden's visit to the country earlier in the year stood in stark contrast to Xi's cordial reception.

In October, after the Saudi-led oil cartel OPEC+ cut oil production, Biden, who had previously pledged to make Saudi Arabia a "pariah" following the death of Khashoggi, said the US needed to "rethink" its relationship with the country.

Washington and Beijing have also been at war over Taiwan, a democratically run island with a population of 24 million that Beijing claims as its own despite having never had control of it, and China's growing sway in the Middle East.

Washington responded by saying it was "not shocked" by Xi's trip to Riyadh and that it was "mindful of the influence that China is trying to develop across the world."

Saudi Arabia has been working to diversify its relationships in recent years, especially in light of increased US criticism of the country's policies and what Gulf monarchs perceive to be a diminishing US security presence in the region.

On Thursday, rituals were held in Saudi Arabia to officially welcome President Xi.

On Thursday, rituals were held in Saudi Arabia to officially welcome President Xi.

CNN/EKHBARIYAH TV

Amena Bakr, the chief OPEC correspondent at Energy Intelligence, stated on Twitter that "China is a strong partner to have and much less critical compared to other western states at a time when Saudi Arabia is seeking to advance its economic diversification plans."

According to Saudi author and analyst Ali Shihabi, there has been annoyance because "US politicians keep defining the Kingdom" in terms of the Khashoggi murder, the Yemen war, and human rights.

Even the US, with all of its resources, spent two decades, trillions of dollars, and incalculable human lives trying to transform Iraq and Afghanistan, only to horribly fail, he said.

Shihabi went on to say that Saudi Arabia "is pursuing a multipolar policy with strong strategic ties."

He claimed that it coordinates with China, India, and Russia on oil and sells arms to the UK and France in place of the US, "while maintaining a hopefully strong but ineluctably rocky relationship with its old friend the US."