Ali Al-Naimi, minister of petroleum and mineral resources of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, received an honorable doctorate from Peking University on November 13. Zhou Qifeng, president of Peking University, granted him the degree.

During his address as an honorary doctorate recipient, Mr. Al-Naimi expressed his admiration for Peking University‘s principal of freedom and openness to ideas. He also reflected on the long term friendship and exchanges between China and Saudi Arabia.

Discussing current relations between China and Saudi Arabia, Al-Naimi noted that China takes a large share of Saudi Arabia‘s gross exports. "We view China as a strategic partner and seek to strengthen, hand in hand, this partnership," he said.

In terms of bilateral cooperation in energy and resources, Al-Naimi firmly stated, "China can rely on Saudi Arabia to provide it with oil in the forthcoming decades." He mentioned Aramco‘s cooperation with Sinopec in the refining ethylene integration project as a strategic step forward for bilateral cooperation on oil.

The minister also said that Saudi Arabia attaches great importance to the exploration of other kinds of energy, including solar energy. Human capital is another focus of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Al-Naimi encouraged students of Peking University to further their studies in Saudi Arabia, in particular at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology.

His Excellency Al-Naimi has served as the minister of petroleum and mineral resources since 1995. Before that, he was the first Saudi president of Aramco, the world‘s largest oil corporation. He remains chairman of the company today. In addition, he also serves on the board of directors for King Abdullah University of Science and Technology.