Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman did not attend the Beijing Winter Olympics opening ceremony on Friday, despite being on China’s official list of attendees.
Instead, the Saudi delegation included Princess Reema Bandar Al-Saud, Saudi ambassador to the US.
On 28 January, the Chinese embassy in Saudi Arabia tweeted a note offering the Crown Prince a warm welcome at the opening ceremony, adding that it was hoped the visit would boost Sino-Saudi strategic ties.
Prince bin Salman was one of the world’s most high-profile leaders due to his participation in the event, which was fueled by diplomatic boycotts by several Western countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada.
China’s foreign ministry said in a statement that Prince bin Salman did not attend the opening ceremony because of “his schedule”.
“Prince Mohamed himself wished the Beijing Winter Olympics success,” the statement said.
Prince bin Salman also did not attend the foreign leaders’ banquet hosted by Chinese President Xi Jinping and his wife Peng Liyuan on Saturday, which was shown on state media CGTN.
The Twitter account of Saudi Arabia’s embassy in the US posted a video of the Saudi princess waving to the Saudi team during the inauguration ceremony. Alpine skier Faik Abdi is the first athlete from Saudi Arabia to ever compete in the Winter Olympics.
This post has been updated with comment from the Chinese Foreign Ministry.
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