China offers visa-free travel to 4 Gulf countries following landmark summit

China extended its short-term stay visa exemption policy to four Persian Gulf countries on Wednesday, a day after a landmark summit with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and Southeast Asian countries.

Starting on June 9, passport holders from Saudi Arabia, Oman, Kuwait and Bahrain will be permitted to enter China without a visa, according to China’s foreign ministry.

Citizens of these countries who intend to stay in China for up to 30 days for business, tourism, family visits or cultural exchanges are able to benefit from this visa-free arrangement, which will be in place for one year as a trial policy.

“On top of the comprehensive mutual visa-exemption policy implemented for the United Arab Emirates and Qatar in 2018, China’s latest visa-free measures now extend to all six GCC member states,” said foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning.

“We warmly welcome more friends from GCC countries to embark on spontaneous, spur-of-the-moment journeys to China.”

The announcement came just one day after leaders from China and the Gulf states met in Kuala Lumpur, where a landmark summit involving China, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) and the GCC was held to strengthen regional economic ties and cushion trade tensions with the US.