Biden will not meet Saudi prince at G20 summit, White House announces

President Joe Biden does not anticipate meeting the crown prince of Saudi ArabiaMohamed bin Salman, at the next summit of the G20 in Indonesia, US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said on Sunday.

Biden “He has no plans to meet the crown prince at the G20 summit.”Sullivan told CNN, amid new tensions in relations between the two countries caused by Saudi pressure to reduce oil production.

LOOK HERE: Tension rises between the US and Saudi Arabia over oil production

Last week’s move by OPEC+, made up of the OPEC (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries) cartel led by Riyadh and an additional group of 10 nations led by Russia, would reduce global production by up to two million barrels a day. From November.

It could send prices skyrocketing amid a war-triggered energy crisis in Ukraine, and as inflation-weary American voters prepare to vote in midterm elections on Nov. 8.

In the United States, this measure was seen as a diplomatic slap in the face, after Biden will travel to Saudi Arabia in July and meet the crown prince despite vowing to make the kingdom an international “pariah” after the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018.

The administration Biden has expressed his support for retaliatory measures handled in Congress by Democratic lawmakers.

But Sullivan said Sunday that the president would not act “hastily.”

“He will act in a methodical, strategic manner and will take his time to consult with members of both parties,” the Democrat and the Republican, he told CNN.

The White House maintains that OPEC+ is “aligning itself with Russia” because the cuts would boost Moscow’s revenue and undermine sanctions imposed over its invasion of Ukraine.

The Saudi government defended the move as motivated purely by economics, not politics.

MORE INFORMATION: Putin and Xi will participate in the G20 summit in Bali, says Indonesian president

The dispute between USA and Saudi Arabia planned on the talks of the finance ministers and the central bankers of the G20 in Washington, which closed Thursday without a joint statement.

The group was already divided by the conflict in Ukraine.

The heads of state and government of the G20 will meet next month in Bali, Indonesia, for a summit in which Biden could coincide with Russian President Vladimir Putin and with another rival, the Chinese leader Xi Jinping.

Source: Elcomercio

Ronald Payne

I, Ronald Payne, am a journalist and author who dedicated his life to telling the stories that need to be said. I have over 7 years of experience as a reporter and editor, covering everything from politics to business to crime.