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Will Saudi Side with China Over US?
Global Recap
June 07, 2023 • Read in: 5 minutes
Hello again, Global Recap readers!
Michael had a heart attack on a flight home from the Bahamas. Luckily, Emily Raines and her boyfriend were on board to help when the flight attendant asked for medical assistance. Emily is an acute care nurse, and her partner is a former nurse as well.
They performed CPR on Michael for 23 minutes. With just 7 minutes until landing, Michael was revived and later rushed to the hospital. True heroes.
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Will Saudi Arabia Side with China Over US?
Blinken’s Visit to Saudi Arabia: After Saudi Arabia announced that it is cutting oil production in July, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited Saudi Arabia to repair and stabilize the strained relationship between the two countries after years of deepening disagreements on issues ranging from Iran and regional security to oil prices.
Meeting with MBS: Blinken met with the kingdom’s de-facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) to discuss:
Economic cooperation in the clean energy and tech sectors.
The need to improve human rights in strengthening the bilateral relationship between the two countries.
Fending off Chinese and Russian influence.
Normalize Saudi-Israel ties.
Regaining influence over oil prices.
Started on the Wrong Foot: Ever since President Biden stated during his 2019 campaign that he would make Saudis:
“… pay the price, and make them in fact the pariah that they are,”
it became clear that Saudi Arabia would seek to distance itself from the influence of Washington.
Nobody should be surprised by the oil giant’s announcement.
Saudi Arabia's announcement this year that it is considering selling oil in Chinese Yuan clearly highlights the strained state of the two countries' relations.
US vs China: In addition, as China actively seeks to bolster its global influence and challenge the immense power of the US on the international stage, there is no doubt that one of the primary objectives of Blinken's visit is to discourage Saudi Arabia from developing excessively close ties with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
According to a senior adviser at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD):
"[Blinken should explain] why Chinese interests do not align with Saudi Arabia, and why closer relations in a strategic way inhibit closer relations with Washington.”