A pact might fall short of the cast-iron, Nato-style defence guarantees the kingdom initially sought when the issue was first discussed in July 2022.

This comes as Saudi Arabia pursues a possible US-brokered deal that would forge formal relations with Israel, whose sovereignty it has never officially recognised.

US-brokered peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians broke down in 2014 and relations between the two sides have plummeted amid a tide of violence.

Expectations that Israel might normalise relations with Saudi Arabia, the home of Islam's two holiest shrines, have been ratcheted up this week.

China and Saudi Arabia have extensive trade relations in the energy field, given the former is the world's biggest importer of crude oil and the latter the biggest exporter.

UN officials in 2022 alleged that Saudi border guards were systematically killing migrants last year; an accusation that Saudi authorities strongly denied.

The migration route from the Horn of Africa, across the Gulf of Aden, through Yemen and into Saudi Arabia - one of the richest countries in the Arab world - is a well-established corridor for Ethiopian migrants.

The Saudi crown prince has pushed to reorient Saudi foreign policy in recent years amid troubles in its historically close relationship with the US.

Saudi Arabia broke ties with Iran in 2016 after protesters attacked its embassy in Tehran in retaliation for Riyadh's execution of a prominent Shiite cleric.

US-Israel ties have been strained by the government's expansion of Jewish settlements on land that the Palestinians seek for a state and by contentious judicial changes pursued by Netanyahu's coalition.

The plan is basically a revival of an idea promoted for years, though little progress has been made.

This follows talks that his national security adviser had with Saudi officials in Jeddah aimed at reaching a normalisation in relations between Saudi Arabia and Israel.