The White House praised a major Saudi role in controlling oil markets, through a greater increase in the production of the OPEC+ alliance during July and August than previously announced.
“We welcome the important decision from OPEC+ today to increase supply in July and August based on new market conditions,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said on Twitter after OPEC+’s announcement.
“We recognize the role of Saudi Arabia as the chair of OPEC+ and its largest producer in achieving this consensus amongst the group members,” she added.
In the same context, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen welcomed the OPEC announcement to increase oil production, in an effort to control markets.
While the decision was met with a positive Western response, Moscow expressed its great interest in maintaining cooperation with the alliance.
Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said that it was important for Moscow to continue cooperation with the OPEC+, but at the same time he stressed that European consumers would be the first to suffer because of the European ban on Russian oil.
“Not only will oil prices rise, but the prices of petroleum products as well. I do not rule out that there will be a major shortage of petroleum products in the European Union,” he stated.
The Russian minister noted that his country would find ways to sell its oil to other markets, describing the European Union’s decision as “political.”
The OPEC+ agreed on Thursday to a larger increase in supply than planned for July and August.
The group said it would raise production by 648,000 barrels a day in July and then again in August, an increase of about 50 percent over the monthly rise set under a program last year. In a statement, the alliance stressed the “importance of market stability and balance.”
