China welcomes Saudi decision to become SCO dialogue partner
Beijing congratulates Saudi Arabia on becoming a dialogue partner of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said at a briefing on Thursday.
Earlier, King Salman bin Abdulaziz of Saudi Arabia approved a memorandum on granting the kingdom the status of an SCO dialogue partner, which was signed in September 2022 at the SCO summit in Samarkand. According to the Saudi News Agency (SPA), the decision was taken during a meeting of the Saudi Arabian cabinet led by the king at Al-Salam Palace in Jeddah.
"We congratulate Saudi Arabia for becoming a dialogue partner of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, we are ready to strengthen cooperation with Saudi Arabia within the framework of the SCO in order to contribute more to maintaining regional security and stability and promoting common development," Mao Ning said.
The SCO is an international organization founded in 2001. India, Kazakhstan, China, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, Pakistan and Uzbekistan participate in it. Observer countries - Afghanistan, Belarus, Iran and Mongolia, partner countries - Azerbaijan, Armenia, Cambodia, Nepal, Turkey and Sri Lanka. At the SCO summit in Samarkand, memorandums on granting the status of dialogue partners to Egypt and Qatar were signed. Bahrain, the Maldives, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates and Myanmar will also receive dialogue partner status.
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