Saudi Arabia’s cabinet on Wednesday approved joining the Shanghai Cooperation Organization as Riyadh builds a long-term partnership with China despite US security concerns.

Saudi Arabia has approved a memorandum on granting partner status to the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), the state-run SPA news agency reported.

The SCO is a political and security association of countries spanning much of Eurasia, including China, India and Russia. Founded in 2001 by Russia, China and the former Soviet states of Central Asia, it has expanded to include India and Pakistan to play a larger role as a counterweight to Western influence in the region.

Iran also signed full membership documents last year.

Joining the SCO was discussed during Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visit to Saudi Arabia last December, sources told Reuters.

Dialogue partner status will be the first step within the organization before the kingdom gains full membership in the medium term.

Growing trade and economic ties

Riyadh’s growing ties to Beijing have raised security concerns in Washington, a traditional ally of the country. The American side says that China’s efforts to exert influence around the world will not change US policy towards the Middle East.

Recall that Saudi Arabia and China signed agreements worth more than 100 billion Saudi riyals ($29.3 billion) in December during President Xi Jinping’s “historic” visit.

According to the SPA, Saudi Arabia attracted more than 20% of Chinese investment in the Arab world between 2002 and 2020, which is actually the largest recipient in the region.

At the same time, Saudi state-owned Aramco acquired a 10% stake (worth $3.6 billion) in Rongsheng Petrochemicals, China’s largest oil refinery. The agreement provides that Riyadh will supply 480,000 barrels of oil per day to the refinery.

Saudi Arabia is the second largest producer and largest exporter of oil in the world. It sells 1.7 million barrels of crude oil to Beijing daily, providing about 46 billion euros per year.

Rapprochement with Iran under the “seal” of China.

The Sino-Saudi rapprochement also led to Riyadh’s historic agreement with Tehran in early March, with which the two former enemies decided to begin the process of normalizing their relationship after decades of friction and confrontation.

Saudi Arabia and Iran severed relations in 2016, and since then they have been in conflict in many countries: Yemen, Syria, Lebanon, Iraq. Other Gulf states, including the United Arab Emirates, lowered diplomatic relations with Tehran, siding with Riyadh.

The two rival powers in the region announced a two-month deadline a few days ago to reopen their embassies and other diplomatic missions.

Their agreement also provides for the renewal of the security treaty they concluded in 2001 on border control and the fight against terrorism.

Source: Reuters, AP, BBC.