Actually relations go back over 2000 years and if you include the pre-Islamic civilizations in the Arab world (ancient Mesopotamia, Arabia, Levant, Egypt etc.) I think this relationship is several millennia old.
KSA/East Arabia alone has traded with IVC (oldest civilization in Pakistan and South Asia) already 5000 years ago. In fact it was Sumer and Dilmun in Southern Iraq and Eastern Arabia that described IVC in the first place.
<p>One of the most significant and impressive archaeological achievements of the twentieth century centers around the discovery of the ancient […]</p>
www.penn.museum
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I think that it is not far fetched to believe that there was contact with China through wartime trade routes much earlier or through land trade.
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The Ancient Maritime Sea Route: 250 BC - 250 AD During the period between 250 BC and 250 AD, a maritime sea route existed between Alexandra in Northern Africa and China. As trade took place along this …
nabataea.net
There are various ancient Arabic/Aramaic/various Semitic language accounts (preserved) of trade and cultural ties with what is called China (as-Sin).
The name for Chinese, many linguists say it derives from the word of porcelain/ceramics.
It has a double meaning because it originates from 秦 Qín. Meaning the Qin dynasty, the first Chinese imperial dynasty.
en.wikipedia.org
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qin_(state)
Unfortunately most of our historical records across the world have been lost or have not yet been discovered. We only know very little of what occurred.
If we go way back (pre-historical times) we see an actual ancestral connection:
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I think that many maternal haplogroups are shared between West and East Asia for example.
Any way.
KSA has mainly China to thank for our local ballistic missile program as well as early drone sector. As well as being the largest economic partner.
In fact in KSA a lot of people were naturalized who were originally from Xinjiang, known often as Al-Turkestani or Al-Kashgari (means a person from the city of Kashgar) and also Chinese Hui Muslims who left for KSA due to some religious limitations long ago (as did some Central Asian communities, in particular Uzbeks).
One of our army generals was of Hui Han Chinese origin.
This famous Hui Chinese warlord, from the Republican era, not sure how he is perceived within China, left for KSA and is/was buried in Jeddah:
en.wikipedia.org
There is also a well-known Chinese Hui (origin) Saudi Arabian editor of one of our largest newspapers.
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Othman al-Sini.
ar.wikipedia.org
There is a Chinese Hui Chinatown in the city of Ta'if. I remember going there as a child to eat local Chinese Hui dishes and visiting the markets with import goods from China.
In the old PDF we once had a pro-China Taiwanese friend, who was an Arabist and who spoke fluent Arabic. He had an amazing knowledge and was an expert. I learned stuff from him even. Not sure if his threads can be found yet but he was a valuable source for Arab-Chinese ties.
You have to explain this if you do not mind. Because last time I checked the Japanese were the aggressors in the region who aggressively killed millions of fellow East Asians. From what I remember it was only Mongol ruled China (Yuan Dynasty) that even attempted (a failed one due to weather) invasion of Japan.
en.wikipedia.org
Vietnamese I might understand due to more recent wars/invasions but people should look past that. I am talking from a civilizational/racial perspective.
I and 99.99% of all Saudi Arabians have not become anti-Yemen or ever will become anti-Yemen due to some past hostilities with 1 group of Yemenis (Houthis) and some tribes/clans there.
