Saudi Arabia has approved a memorandum on granting the kingdom the status of a dialogue partner in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), state news agency SPA said. The SCO is a political and security union of countries spanning much of Eurasia, including China, India and Russia. Formed in 2001 by Russia, China and former Soviet states in Central Asia, the body has been expanded to include India and Pakistan, with a view to playing a bigger role as counterweight to Western influence in the region. The approval came during a Saudi Cabinet session headed by the King at the al-Salam Palace in Jeddah. King Salman bin Abdulaziz also authorized the launch of technical and vocational training between the Kingdom and China. During the session, the Saudi Cabinet condemned the burning of the holy Quran outside the Turkish embassy in Denmark that took place last Friday, stressing the need to consolidate the values of dialogue, tolerance, and respect. Joining the SCO was discussed during a visit by Chinese President Xi Jinping to Saudi Arabia last December, sources have told Reuters. Dialogue partner status will be a first step within the organization before granting the kingdom full membership in the mid-term, they said. The decision followed an announcement by Saudi Aramco (2222.SE) which raised its multi-billion dollar investment in China on Tuesday, by finalizing a planned joint venture in northeast China and acquiring a stake in a privately controlled petrochemical group.