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China’s premier Wen Jiabao will visit the Gulf counties of Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and Qatar from January 14 -19. Wen Jiabao’s visit will be the first by a Chinese premier to Saudi Arabia in 20 years and to the other two Gulf countries since diplomatic relations were established in the 1980s. Wen will sign a number of agreements related to trade, energy, education, economic, culture and sports with UAE and Saudi Arabia.
During his visit, he is expected to discuss the Arab Spring with the leaders of these countries. China hopes that Middle Eastern countries would resolve issues peacefully using dialogue. “China hopes the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of these countries will be respected by the international community,” China’s Deputy Foreign Minister Zhai Jun said.
