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Context

• Saudi Arabia has agreed to join the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) as a “dialogue partner, the latest indication of closer political ties with China.

Recent Developments

• The decision followed an announcement by Saudi Aramco, which raised its multibillion-dollar investment in China, by finalising a planned joint venture in northeast China and acquiring a stake in a privately controlled petrochemical group.
• Riyadh’s move to partner with the bloc also came less than three weeks after the unveiling of a landmark China-brokered reconciliation deal with Iran to restore full diplomatic relations that were severed seven years ago.
• Riyadh has said that while it had engaged in previous rounds of bilateral talks with Tehran, the reconciliation process was jump-started by President Xi Jinping’s offer last year to serve as a “bridge” between the two Middle East heavyweights.

Must-Read Articles:

SCO Analysis: https://www.iasgyan.in/blogs/sco-summit-an-analysis

https://epaper.thehindu.com/ccidist-ws/th/th_delhi/issues/30551/OPS/GLCB24218.1+G3UB24F7C.1.html

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