Chinese President Hu Jintao will arrive here on Feb. 10 on a two-day official visit to the Kingdom, Yong Hong Lin, Chinese Ambassador told a press conference at his residence, Wednesday. President Hu will hold talks with King Abdullah, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, on bilateral relations between the two countries focusing on political and economic issues including trade, energy cooperation, education, cultural relations and Haj, Lin said. The two leaders will also discuss a number of political issues including Palestinian problem and on topics of mutual interest in the regional and international arena, he said. During the talks with King Abdullah on energy cooperation China will seek to increase the supply of oil from Saudi Arabia. According to an official source for quite sometime the two sides are working on a mechanism to guarantee the increased supply of oil to China. Currently, China imports around 26 million tons (100 million barrel/year) of oil from Saudi Arabia. Besides energy, the two sides will also talk on development of infrastructure, employment of Chinese workers in Saudi Arabia and King Abdullah's students' scholarship program, he said. Around 200 Saudi students are studying in China on King Abdullah's Scholarship program. Ambassador Lin said Saudi Arabia ranked first trade partner of China in West Asia and Africa with the volume of bilateral trade reaching $41.8 billion in 2008, which is up from $25.3 billion in 2007. “President Hu is leading a 100-member delegation that includes important ministers from the Chinese cabinet, which reflects the importance of Saudi Arabia to China,” he said. He said the economic relations are ever increasing after the exchange of high-level visits between the two countries. King Abdullah visited China in 2006 which was followed by President Hu's visit to Saudi Arabia. This will be President Hu's second visit to the Kingdom in three years. The two sides set a target to increase the bilateral trade volume to $40 billion by 2010, which has already exceeded in 2009, he said. China also endorsed King Abdullah's initiative of Interfaith Dialogue, he said.
