Saudi Arabia strengthens ties with China through security bloc membership.

Saudi Arabia has taken a step towards joining the China-led security bloc, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), by approving a memorandum granting the kingdom "dialogue partner status." The move comes as the kingdom and other Persian Gulf states have grown wary about losing the US as its historical security guarantor and have looked to diversify partners. The SCO is a political and security union that aims to counter Western influence and includes Russia, China, former Soviet states in central Asia, India, and Pakistan.