Pakistan expresses solidarity with Saudi Arabia on OPEC+ issue

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan, in the wake of statements made against the Kingdom in the context of Organization of Oil Exporting Countries (OPEC+) decision, expressed solidarity with the leadership of Saudi Arabia, ARY News reported on Tuesday.

“We appreciate the concerns of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for avoiding market volatility and ensuring global economic stability,” the Foreign Office said in a statement.

The statement added, “Pakistan encourages a constructive approach on such issues based on engagement and mutual respect.”

“We reaffirm our long-standing, abiding and fraternal ties with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia,” the statement maintained.

Earlier this month, Opec+, the producer group comprising the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) plus allies including Russia, agreed to reduce two million barrels per day from November.

The decision to cut production by two million barrels a day from November infuriated the White House, with President Joe Biden promising “consequences” for OPEC’s top producer Saudi Arabia.

However, Saudi Arabia rejected baseless accusations that last week’s output cut by oil cartel OPEC and its allies, including Russia, was politically motivated against the United States.

“Saudi Arabia has viewed the statements… which have described the decision as the kingdom taking sides in international conflicts and that it was politically motivated against the United States,” the Saudi foreign ministry said in a statement.

Saudi Arabia would “like to express its total rejection of these statements that are not based on facts and which are based on portraying the OPEC+ decision out of its economic context,” it added.

The kingdom insisted that decisions by OPEC and its allies, known as OPEC+, were taken “purely on economic considerations” and that its economic advice had been to resist calls to delay the production cut.