Saudi Arabia’s cabinet has given the green light on Wednesday to the decision of joining the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), as the kingdom strengthens its long-term relationship with China, despite U.S. security concerns, according to the state news agency SPA. The SCO, a political and security union, includes China, India, and Russia, among other countries across Eurasia. The organization, initially formed in 2001 by Russia, China, and former Soviet states in Central Asia, has expanded to include India and Pakistan to act as a counterweight to Western influence in the region.
Sources have said that joining the SCO was discussed during Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visit to Saudi Arabia in December last year. The decision to grant the kingdom the status of a dialogue partner within the organization is the first step before full membership in the mid-term, they added.
This decision comes after the announcement made by Saudi Aramco on Tuesday, raising its multi-billion dollar investment in China by finalizing a planned joint venture in northeast China and acquiring a stake in a privately controlled petrochemical group. These growing ties with Beijing have raised security concerns in Washington, while Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states have been worried about the US’ withdrawal from the region and have been diversifying partners. The countries belonging to the organization are planning to hold a joint “counter-terrorism exercise” in Russia’s Chelyabinsk region in August this year.
The Saudi Council of Ministers has officially approved the proposal to join Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO). 🇸🇦 🇨🇳 🇷🇺 🇮🇳 pic.twitter.com/UFu7d7uttj
— Ebrahim Hashem 李思瑞 إبراهيم هاشم (@EbrahimHashem) March 29, 2023
, as the kingdom strengthens its long-term relationship with China, despite U.S. security concerns, according to the state news agency SPA){kind=link}