The Saudi Cabinet approved, on Wednesday, March 29, 2023, the decision to join the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, at a time when Riyadh is building a long-term partnership with China, despite American security concerns.

The Saudi Press Agency said that the Kingdom agreed on a memorandum granting Saudi Arabia the status of dialogue partner in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization.

The organization is a political and security union of countries occupying a large area of Eurasia, including China, India, and Russia. It was established in 2001 between Russia, China, and former Soviet Union countries in Central Asia, and expanded to include India and Pakistan, aiming to play a greater role in countering Western influence in the region.

Iran also signed full membership documents with the organization last year, while sources reported that Saudi Arabia's accession to the organization was discussed during Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit to the Kingdom. The sources added that the dialogue partner status would be a first step before granting the Kingdom full membership in the medium term.

The decision comes after Saudi Aramco announced yesterday, Tuesday, that it increased its investments in China by several billion dollars through completing a planned joint project in northeast China, and acquiring a stake in a private petrochemical group.

The growing relations between Riyadh and Beijing raise concerns in Washington, the Kingdom’s traditional ally. Washington says that China’s attempts to exert influence worldwide will not change American policy towards the Middle East.

Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries have expressed concern over what they see as the U.S. withdrawing, the main security guarantor, from the region, and these countries have taken steps to diversify their partnerships. Washington says it will continue its effective partnership in the region.

The member states of the organization also plan to hold a "joint counter-terrorism drill" in Chelyabinsk, Russia, in August of this year.

It is noted that China is Saudi Arabia’s most important trading partner, with annual trade volume close to $80 billion. China recently signed an agreement to build a renewable energy project within the framework of the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s vision to achieve zero carbon emissions by 2060. The Saudis have applied for a license for direct trading on the Shanghai Stock Exchange, while President Biden expressed concern over the growing Chinese presence in the Middle East.