Russia and Saudi Arabia both rely on oil sales to fund a majority of their budgets. In the last five plus years, China has become the biggest customer for both countries. In fact, China is the world’s largest importer of oil, though it could cut imports if it stopped adding to inventory (storage). China has stored so much oil over that half a decade, that it could practically halt all oil imports and get by just fine for a while. In other words, Vladimir Putin and Muhammed bin Salman need to stay in the good graces of Xi Jinping. This has global consequences, including for the United States.