Saudi Press

Saudi Arabia and the world
Thursday, Oct 02, 2025

Chinese envoy Chen Weiqing looks forward to this year’s Riyadh Season

Chinese envoy Chen Weiqing looks forward to this year’s Riyadh Season

One of the many Kingdom’s residents who is looking forward to this year’s Riyadh Season is the Chinese Ambassador, Chen Weiqing. He tweeted his excitement for the - yet to be announced - events after the promo video by the president of the General Entertainment Authority, Turki Al-Sheikh. The video has received more than 20 million views since it was tweeted on October 10.
Ambassador Chen tweeted on Wednesday an interaction between Al-Sheikh and Egyptian singer Amr Diab, who performed in the 2019 Riyadh Season.
When the chairman of the GEA posted a clip of Frank Sinatra singing “My Way” the singer commented, “You have exquisite taste in music.”

Ambassador Chen tweeted, “I stumbled upon a beautiful interaction between two kind gentlemen,” adding “Amr Diab is my favorite musician, I like his songs very much, I made the song “Wahashtiny” my ringtone.”

Amr Diab’s fandom has sky-rocketed in recent years with numerous appearances at major events in the Kingdom such as Formula-E’s debut in the Middle East at Diriyah in 2018.

Al-Sheikh replied lightheartedly to the ambassador’s tweet: “Thank you very much, Ambassador and you are more than welcome in your second country. I have one complaint, Amr Diab keeps getting younger every year.”

The singer excitedly replied: “I am very happy with the Chinese Ambassador @AmbChenWeiQing’s interaction (with us) and your follow ups with my songs.

This is Riyadh Season’s mission, to go global. Thank you @Turki_alalshikh, you are making me bear a great responsibility to be younger than the year before.”On Saturday, the chairman of the GEA tweeted an invite to the Chinese ambassador: “@AmbChenWeiQing The General Entertainment Authority invites you to any party or event, for you and your dear family, an invite from me personally.”

The ambassador replied: “Thank you for the kind invite, you are part of my family.” The heartwarming interaction between important figures from two nations made Twitter flood with comments from users that show the strong ties between the Kingdom and the People’s Republic of China.

In an interview with Arab News last month, Ambassador Chen highlighted how the ties between the two nations had strengthened after the pandemic.

“The saying ‘a friend in need is a friend indeed’ has become the best footnote to the friendship between China and Saudi Arabia,” he told Arab News.

The ambassador said the two countries responded quickly to support each other.

“At the critical time when the Chinese people were striving to win the battle against COVID-19, the Saudi Arabian government and people, from all walks of life, voiced support and offered assistance to China in various ways,” he said.

Chen said that since the outbreak Chinese President Xi Jinping and King Salman have spoken three times on the phone, and the two countries have carried out high-level cooperation in COVID-19 prevention and control. “I believe greater progress and development of bilateral relations will be achieved after the pandemic,” he added. Riyadh Season took off in 2019 and attracted more than 5 million visitors - both locals and from abroad.
Newsletter

Related Articles

Saudi Press
0:00
0:00
Close
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Trump Organization Teams with Saudi Developer on $1 Billion Trump Plaza in Jeddah
Electronic Arts to Be Taken Private in Historic $55 Billion Buyout
Colombian President Petro Vows to Mobilize Volunteers for Gaza and Joins List of Fighters
Nvidia and Abu Dhabi’s TII Launch First AI-&-Robotics Lab in the Middle East
UK, Canada, and Australia Officially Recognise Palestine in Historic Shift
New Eye Drops Show Promise in Replacing Reading Glasses for Presbyopia
Dubai Property Boom Shows Strain as Flippers Get Buyer’s Remorse
Top AI Researchers Are Heading Back to China as U.S. Struggles to Keep Pace
JWST Data Brings TRAPPIST-1e Closer to Earth-Like Habitability
UAE-US Stargate Project Poised to Make Abu Dhabi a Global AI Powerhouse
Trump and Starmer Clash Over UK Recognition of Palestinian State Amid State Visit
Saudi Arabia cracks down on music ‘lounges’ after conservative backlash
Saudi Arabia Signs ‘Strategic Mutual Defence’ Pact with Pakistan, Marking First Arab State to Gain Indirect Access to Nuclear Strike Capabilities in the Region
Sam Altman sells the 'Wedding Estate' in Hawaii for 49 million dollars
Turkish car manufacturer Togg Enters German Market with 5-Star Electric Sedan and SUV to Challenge European EV Brands
World’s Longest Direct Flight China Eastern to Launch 29-Hour Shanghai–Buenos Aires Direct Flight via Auckland in December
New OpenAI Study Finds Majority of ChatGPT Use Is Personal, Not Professional
Kuwait opens bidding for construction of three cities to ease housing crunch.
This Week in AI: Meta’s Superintelligence Push, xAI’s Ten Billion-Dollar Raise, Genesis AI’s Robotics Ambitions, Microsoft Restructuring, Amazon’s Million-Robot Milestone, and Google’s AlphaGenome Update
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
Turkish authorities seize leading broadcaster amid fraud and tax investigation
Qatari prime minister says Netanyahu ‘killed any hope’ for Israeli hostages
Apple Introduces Ultra-Thin iPhone Air, Enhanced 17 Series and New Health-Focused Wearables
Big Oil Slashes Jobs and Investments Amid Prolonged Low Crude Prices
Social Media Access Curtailed in Turkey After CHP Calls for Rallies Following Police Blockade of Istanbul Headquarters
Did the Houthis disrupt the internet in the Middle East? Submarine cables cut in the Red Sea
Gold Could Reach Nearly $5,000 if Fed Independence Is Undermined, Goldman Sachs Warns
Uruguay, Colombia and Paraguay Secure Places at 2026 World Cup
Trump Administration Advances Plans to Rebrand Pentagon as Department of War Instead of the Fake Term Department of Defense
Tether Expands into Gold Sector with Profit-Driven Diversification
Trump’s New War – and the ‘Drug Tyrant’ Fearing Invasion: ‘1,200 Missiles Aimed at Us’
At the Parade in China: Laser Weapons, 'Eagle Strike,' and a Missile Capable of 'Striking Anywhere in the World'
Information Warfare in the Age of AI: How Language Models Become Targets and Tools
Israeli Airstrike in Yemen Kills Houthi Prime Minister
After the Shock of Defeat, Iranians Yearn for Change
YouTube Altered Content by Artificial Intelligence – Without Permission
Iran Faces Escalating Water Crisis as Protests Spread
More Than Half a Million Evacuated as Typhoon Kajiki Heads for Vietnam
HSBC Switzerland Ends Relationships with Over 1,000 Clients from Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Qatar, and Egypt
Sharia Law Made Legally Binding in Austria Despite Warnings Over 'Incompatible' Values
Dogfights in the Skies: Airbus on Track to Overtake Boeing and Claim Aviation Supremacy
Tim Cook Promises an AI Revolution at Apple: "One of the Most Significant Technologies of Our Generation"
Are AI Data Centres the Infrastructure of the Future or the Next Crisis?
Miles Worth Billions: How Airlines Generate Huge Profits
Zelenskyy Returns to White House Flanked by European Allies as Trump Pressures Land-Swap Deal with Putin
Beijing is moving into gold and other assets, diversifying away from the dollar
Cristiano Ronaldo Makes Surprise Stop at New Hong Kong Museum
Zelenskyy to Visit Washington after Trump–Putin Summit Yields No Agreement
×