White House Accuses OPEC+ of Siding with Russia After Biden Fails to Get Saudis to Pump More Oil
The White House on Wednesday accused the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC+) of siding with Russia by deciding to cut oil production.
“Look, it’s clear that OPEC+ is aligning with Russia with today’s announcement,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said to reporters aboard Air Force One. President Joe Biden also expressed his concern about the decision, calling it “unnecessary” as he left the White House to travel to Florida to witness the storm damage caused by Hurricane Ian.
The White House was sharply critical of the OPEC+ decision to cut production by two million barrels a day, calling it “short-sighted” and a “mistake.” The decision proved that Biden’s attempt to smooth his relationship with Saudi Arabia and other allies in the Middle East to encourage more oil production failed.
The president traveled to Saudi Arabia in July and even fist-bumped Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) despite denouncing the country as a “pariah.” Despite Biden’s trip, the Saudis appear indifferent to America’s struggle for cheaper gasoline. In response to the news of OPEC+ cutting production, the White House said Biden would release an additional ten million barrels of oil from the United States Strategic Oil Reserve in November to keep prices low.
The White House did not make any mention of future efforts to increase domestic oil production but pointed to Biden’s efforts to increase the supply of green energy in the United States. “With the Inflation Reduction Act, we are making a historic investment in accelerating the transition to clean energy,” Jean-Pierre said.
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