Saudi Arabia and Russia reaffirmed close cooperation in the OPEC+ oil cartel, and discussed Ukraine, grains and Syria at a foreign ministers’ meeting Thursday.
(Bloomberg) —
Saudi Arabia and Russia reaffirmed close cooperation in the OPEC+ oil cartel, and discussed Ukraine, grains and Syria at a foreign ministers’ meeting Thursday.
Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan said he spoke with his Russian counterpart about “the importance of deep coordination between the Kingdom and Russia in the energy markets” and expressed his country’s “unflinching commitment” to the OPEC+ agreement.
Speaking at a joint press conference in Moscow, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that energy cooperation was not affected by the war in Ukraine. The US and its allies have been seeking to isolate Moscow for its invasion with sanctions and have armed Ukrainian forces in the conflict.
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The next OPEC+ ministerial meeting is in early June. US President Joe Biden last October accused Riyadh of siding with Russia when OPEC+ cut production despite pleas from Washington to do otherwise. US-Saudi relations hit a new low over oil policy, and Moscow has sought to capitalize on the rift.
The Saudi foreign minister’s visit to Moscow comes after he went on a surprise trip to Kyiv at the end of last month, the first visit by a senior Saudi official in 30 years. Saudi Arabia, which has been involved in prisoner swaps between Russia and Ukraine, would continue to “search for the possibilities of facilitating dialog between both sides,” Prince Faisal said. Gulf Arab states have sought to hedge their positions between Moscow and Kyiv.
Lavrov also spoke on Syria, where Russia has been deeply involved since 2015 in support of President Bashar Al-Assad. He said Syria should be allowed back to the Arab League. Saudi Arabia has said such a move is premature.
–With assistance from Kateryna Kadabashy.
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