12/10/2022–|Last update: 10/12/202203:47 AM (Mecca)
US State Department spokesman Ned Price said on Tuesday that the administration of President Joe Biden will not turn a blind eye to the threat posed by Iran when reviewing Washington’s relationship with Saudi Arabia following the OPEC Plus decision to reduce oil production.
He explained that “there are security challenges, some of which stem from Iran. Certainly, we will not turn a blind eye to the threat that Iran poses, not only to the region, but to other regions as well.”
Price added that the previous US president’s visit to Jeddah was to attend the Gulf Cooperation Council meeting and that it was not wrong, but rather the recent decision of “OPEC Plus”.
He said that since the early days of the Biden administration, there has been talk of the need to review the United States’ relations with Saudi Arabia in order to serve American interests.
He stressed that the US administration continues to consult with allies and Congress on the form that the relationship with Saudi Arabia should look like, and that it will engage in intensive dialogue with Congress on these relations.
Reassess Relationships
In this regard, National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said in a statement to CNN yesterday, Tuesday, that “in light of recent developments and the decisions of OPEC Plus, the president believes that we should conduct a reassessment of bilateral relations with Saudi Arabia.”
And he noted that we must “make sure that (the relationship) serves our national security interests,” adding that Biden “is prepared to work with Congress to think regarding what this relationship should be in the future.”
The State Department also noted that it wants lawmakers’ ideas on how to change the relationship with Riyadh to make it more conducive to American interests. She explained that the Biden administration will not turn a blind eye to Iran’s threat when reviewing the relationship with Saudi Arabia following the OPEC decision.
For her part, White House spokeswoman Karen Jan Pepper said that President Joe Biden has been clear since the beginning of his administration regarding the need for a different relationship with Saudi Arabia.
The spokeswoman added that Washington is reviewing relations with Saudi Arabia and will follow up on what happens in the coming weeks in light of consultations with Congress. She added that the “OPEC Plus” decision shows that Saudi Arabia is aligned with Russia in terms of energy policies.
For his part, Senator, Democrat Richard Blumenthal, said he and Representative Ro Khanna had submitted a bill calling for a one-year moratorium on arms and ammunition sales to Saudi Arabia.
He explained that the draft law sends a strong message to Saudi Arabia, while the United States is working to restore balance to what he described as a one-sided relationship, adding that it cannot continue to sell sensitive military technology to a country aligned with what he described as a hateful terrorist enemy.
Democratic Senator Bob Menendez, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, previously announced that the United States should immediately freeze all aspects of US cooperation with Saudi Arabia, including arms sales.
purely economic decision
In turn, Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan said that the military cooperation between Riyadh and Washington serves the two countries, and indicated that the OPEC Plus decision to reduce production by two million barrels per day is a purely economic decision and was taken unanimously by the member states.
The Saudi Cabinet, during its meeting today, referred to the pivotal role of the OPEC Plus group in achieving balance and stability in global oil markets, and supporting the global economy.
