The White House on Tuesday announced that US President Joe Biden is re-evaluating his country’s relations with Saudi Arabia. This comes after the OPEC+ group of oil producers announced on October 5, to reduce production by an amount greater than what was agreed upon earlier.
“President Biden is reassessing his country’s relations with Saudi Arabia,” White House national security spokesman John Kirby said in an interview with CNN.
He added, “Biden wishes to cooperate with Congress regarding future relations with Saudi Arabia.”
Kirby said that the OPEC+ decision disappointed Biden, and “he intends to work with Congress to think about the nature of this relationship,” and added, “It is time to make sure that US-Saudi relations serve the United States national interest.”
“I think the president would be willing to start these talks immediately. I don’t think this is something that can be postponed or should be put off, quite frankly, for any longer,” he adds.
Kirby further added that the issue is not just about the war in Ukraine but the national security interests of the United States.
Kirby stressed that “reducing oil production is a decision taken by OPEC+, but it is clear that Saudi Arabia is the leader of this bloc.”
Kirby’s statement came after Senator Bob Menendez, the Democratic chair of the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee, called on Monday, to freeze cooperation with Saudi Arabia, especially with regard to most arms sales.
Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan told Al Arabiya TV, on Tuesday, that the countries of the OPEC+ alliance acted responsibly and took the appropriate decision, in reference to the coalition’s decision to reduce production by two million barrels per day.
The minister added that the OPEC+ decision was purely economic and was taken unanimously by member states, stressing that the alliance seeks to stabilize the market and achieve the interests of producers and consumers.
On October 5, the OPEC+ alliance agreed to reduce production by two million barrels per day, starting next November, which angered Washington and considered it an extension of support for Russia.
Biden blamed Russia and Saudi Arabia for the rise in oil prices, while Riyadh denied deliberately harming the United States by reducing production, stressing that the step was to ensure market stability.
