Saudi Arabia is now a China-Russia “ally,” bidding farewell to America.

International

Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia – Saudi Arabia was previously known as a close partner of the United States (US). But now, King Salman’s country is starting to openly show its closeness to Washington’s “opponent”, China.

Saudi Arabia’s cabinet approved the decision to join the Chinese-led security bloc. This strengthens Riyadh’s relationship with the East which automatically “takes one step” away from US interests.

Launch CNBC International Thursday (30/3/2023), Saudi Arabia’s press agency reported that in a cabinet meeting chaired by King Salman bin Abdulaziz Tuesday, it approved a memorandum giving Riyadh “partner” status with the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SOC). This position is the same as Turkey, Qatar, Egypt and the “enemy” of the US, Iran, in that group.

The SOC itself is a political, security and trade alliance. Not only China, Washington’s other opponent, namely Russia, is also a full member, apart from a number of countries such as India Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan.

Saudi Arabia’s move to partner with the bloc comes less than three weeks after the unveiling of a landmark China-brokered reconciliation deal. In which Riyadh restored full diplomatic relations severed seven years ago with Iran.

So far, Iran, which is predominantly Shiite, has become a rival to Saudi Arabia, which is Sunni Muslim. The two countries are engaged in a series of proxy conflicts in the region, such as the protracted fighting in Yemen.

Riyadh said that despite having engaged in previous rounds of bilateral talks with Tehran, the reconciliation process began with Chinese President Xi Jinping’s overture last year. Beijing serves as a “bridge” between the two Middle Eastern heavyweights.

“Xi’s role in rapprochement raised eyebrows in Saudi Arabia’s traditionally close partnership with Washington, though those ties have been strained recently over disputes over human rights and oil production,” wrote AFP describe that relationship.

It is understood Xi Jinping also had a telephone call on Tuesday with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS), the son of King Salman and the de facto ruler of the Gulf country. He praised what he called easing tensions in the Middle East.

Meanwhile, the US through State Department spokesperson Vedant Patel downplayed the impact of the SOC. He said that it had long been guessed.

“Each country has its own relationship,” Patel said.

Need to know, according to ReutersChina is Saudi Arabia’s largest trading partner, with bilateral trade valued at US$87.3 billion in 2021. China is the main consumer of the kingdom’s hydrocarbon-dependent oil exports, with both countries making significant inroads in their respective petrochemical sectors.

One of them, the recent announcement by Saudi state-controlled oil giant Aramco of a joint venture that will build a refinery and petrochemical complex in Panjin in northeastern China. The partnership was carried out with partners Norinco and Panjin Xincheng Industrial Group.

(sef/sef)