Secretary of State Antony Blinken dismissed the suggestion that the Biden Administration was rejected by oil-leading countries in the Middle East. This is as the U.S. seeks to offset rising oil prices due to Russia’s war with Ukraine.
The secretary stated, “We all talk regularly.” He continued, “I spent quite a bit of time talking on the phone with my Emirati counterpart.” “I met regularly with my Saudi counterpart, even in Munich, just weeks ago. Last month, President Biden met with King Salman of Saudi Arabia in a conversation that laid out an extensive agenda.
The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday morning that leaders from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates declined calls from Biden in recent weeks. According to the report, Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, and Mohammed bin Zayed al Nahyan, UAE Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al Nahyan spoke with Vladimir Putin despite not wanting to speak with Biden.
A U.S. official said that there was “some expectation of a telephone call, but it did not happen” regarding the planned meeting between the Saudi Prince Mohammed (Saudi Prince Mohammed) and Biden. It was part of the Saudi oil spigot turning on.
As Russia continues its devastating invasion of Ukraine for the second week, the U.S. and NATO allies are trying to get support for Ukraine.
Biden announced Tuesday that it would ban Russian oil, gas, and coal imports in an attempt to stop President Vladimir Putin’s “vicious War of Choice.”
The U.K. stated that it would eliminate its dependence on Russian oil by 2022. The European Union also said it would reduce its Russian oil imports. This is a difficult move given the fact that 40% of Europe’s oil comes from Moscow, while the U.S. gets 3%.
Wednesday’s joint press conference with Blinken saw Elizabeth Truss, U.K. Foreign Secretary, exhorting other countries to “get on board our sanctions effort.”
She stated that “One hundred forty-one countries voted for Russia aggression.” We will eliminate strategic dependence on authoritarian regimes to obtain our energy and other vital resources. We will also intensify our efforts to create economic and security alliances all over the globe, including with India. This will help to further isolate Russia.
This week, gas prices reached a new record high and will continue to rise globally as Russia continues to make efforts to control its economy via its largest moneymaker, oil production.
Blinken suggested Wednesday, however, that despite the reluctance of the Saudi-led Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries Plus(OPEC+) to increase crude oil production last year in the face of a seven-year-high, the UAE-member OPEC may reconsider.
Blinken stated that he believed there had been an announcement a while back – although I don’t know if it was made public – regarding Emirati support for increased production in OPEC +. “I believe this is an important thing to stabilize global oil markets and ensure that there is an ample supply of energy all over the globe.
