The United States President, Joe Biden, has warned that the de-facto leader of OPEC+ would face the consequences of last week’s decision of the group to cut oil production by 2 million barrels per day, the biggest output cut since the commencement of the coronavirus pandemic.
White House had seriously condemned the decision of the oil-producing alliance to reduce global oil supply in order to sustain higher oil prices, an action that is seen as benefitting Russia, the world’s second-largest oil exporter, and helping finance its war in Ukraine.
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Democratic Senator, Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, and Rep. Ro Khanna of California introduced legislation that would immediately pause all US arms sales to Saudi Arabia for one year. This pause would also halt sales of spare and repair parts, support services, and logistical support
This was made known by Biden during an interview with CNN’s Jake Tapper, saying that he would look to consult with congress on the way forward, although he stopped short of endorsing the Democratic lawmakers’ call to halt weapons sales.
When asked by Tapper if it’s time for the U.S. to rethink its relationship with Saudi Arabia, Biden said, “Yes.”
What the US President is saying
Joe Biden during the interview said, “There’s going to be some consequences for what they’ve done, with Russia. I’m not going to get into what I’d consider and what I have in mind. But there will be — there will be consequences.”
The president indicated that action would be taken when Congress is back in session after the midterm elections.
Meanwhile, the White House press secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre, said during a briefing earlier on Tuesday that the United States would reassess its relationship with Saudi Arabia following OPEC+’s “decision to align their energy policy with Russia’s war.”
She said, “We need to kind of reassess and have a different relationship with Saudi Arabia,” she said, adding that the White House would be reviewing its policies in the coming weeks and months.’’
What you should know
- Recall that on October 5, 2022, the full OPEC+ group which includes Russia and Saudi Arabia, announced that it will cut crude oil production by its members by 2 million barrels per day from the month of November 2022.
- The decision was taken after the 45th meeting of the Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee (JMMC) and the 33rd OPEC and Non-OPEC Ministerial meeting on Wednesday, October 5, 2022, at the OPEC Secretariat in Vienna, Austria.
- The production cut by OPEC+ had led to panic within the United States Government with White House officials and representatives meeting with influential members of the group from going ahead with such a decision.
- The US had described the prospect of a production cut as a “total disaster” and warned that it could be taken as a “hostile act.”
