ABSTRACT
This chapter explores the evolving relationship between China and Saudi Arabia in the twenty-first century and the cultural and strategic implications of Dr Mohammed Saleh A. It explores the cultural and historical ties between China and Saudi Arabia and the emerging framework of the One Belt, One Road (OBOR). In describing OBOR, President Xi Jinping has frequently invoked the exploits of Zheng He, the Muslim Chinese admiral who led naval expeditions from 1405 to 1433 throughout Southeast Asia and the Indian Ocean, including to the Straits of Malacca and to Yemen and Jeddah. While China depends on the free flow of oil from Middle Eastern states, including Saudi Arabia, Beijing lacks the military capability to project power on its own into the region. Nor can it today guarantee the security of a country as large and as far away from the Chinese mainland as Saudi Arabia.
