Saudi Arabia’s cabinet has approved to join the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO). According to state news agency, Saudi Arabia also approved a memorandum on granting the kingdom the status of a dialogue partner in the SCO.
Last year, Iran signed the necessary paperwork to become a full member. The topic of joining the SCO came up during Chinese President Xi Jinping’s trip to Saudi Arabia in December.
Shanghai Cooperation Organization
The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) is a Eurasian political, economic, International security and defence organization. It is the world’s largest regional organization in terms of geographic scope and population, covering approximately 60% of the area of Eurasia, 40% of the world population, and more than 30% of global GDP.
- Headquarters: Beijing, China
- Founded: 15 June 2001
- Founders: China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan