Peskov commented on US threats to retaliate against Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia is a sovereign state and an important player in the energy market, and the country can make decisions that affect its own economy, said Dmitry Peskov, a spokesman for the President of the Russian Federation, commenting on the words of US President Joe Biden about retaliatory measures to reduce oil production.

“Saudi Arabia is a sovereign state, a responsible state, a very important player in the international energy markets. Therefore, of course, this sovereign state can quite sovereignly make a decision that concerns its own economy. It is unlikely that anyone, even the United States, needs to read notations or moralizing how to be in this or that case, ”Peskov said.

The day before, June 8, The Washington Post (WP) newspaper reportedthat the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman, threatened to break off relations with the US administration. He privately said he would change decades-old US-Saudi relations and could inflict economic costs on the US if retaliatory measures follow. Salman did so after Biden promised “consequences” for Saudi Arabia in the fall of 2022 for its decision to cut oil production amid high energy prices and upcoming elections.

The newspaper notes that it is not known whether these threats were directly delivered to the White House. The National Security Council said they did not know anything about this, noting that the United States continues to cooperate with Saudi Arabia.

Earlier, Vedomosti wrote that US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken held talks with the Crown Prince on June 7. On the eve of Blinken’s visit on June 5, the Saudis promised to cut oil production from 10 million to 9 million barrels per day, in addition to a broad OPEC + deal to limit production until 2024. Franklin Roosevelt, Yuri Rogulev noted that the Americans will try to dissuade Riyadh from cutting production from July 1, as this will lead to higher prices on world markets.