Iran: US Request to Saudi Arabia for Increased Oil Production is 'Surprising'

The US request to Saudi Arabia to increase oil production has drawn severe criticism from Iran, which described it as 'madness' and 'surprising,' emphasizing that OPEC will not comply with such demands. Reuters reported on Friday, June 8, the statements of Hossein Kazempour Ardebili, Iran's representative to OPEC, who said: 'It is madness and surprising that Washington instructs Saudi Arabia on what to do and asks it to fill the gap in Iran's exports due to the illegal sanctions it has imposed on Iran and Venezuela.' Last month, US President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew from the nuclear agreement between Iran and world powers and ordered the re-imposition of sanctions against Tehran. Mr. Trump has also criticized high oil prices, blaming OPEC for it. Reports indicate that during this time, US officials have informally asked Saudi Arabia and some other OPEC members to increase their oil production before the re-imposition of sanctions against Iran. One report even suggests that a day before Donald Trump's withdrawal from the JCPOA, a senior US official contacted Saudi Arabia and asked it to help stabilize oil prices if this decision led to turmoil in the oil market. Previous sanctions against Tehran, which the European Union also played a role in, caused a 50% reduction in Iran's oil production, dropping to less than one million barrels per day. This time, although the European Union opposes the US decision to withdraw from the JCPOA and re-impose sanctions against Iran, many European companies have cut ties with Tehran for fear of being caught by US sanctions. Meanwhile, Iran has requested OPEC to discuss the US sanctions at its next meeting scheduled for July 22. However, Reuters reported in another article citing informed sources that OPEC is likely to reject Iran's request for discussion on this matter. According to this unnamed source in the Reuters report, after Iran's request was sent to OPEC, Ahmed al-Kaabi, the UAE representative in OPEC, requested that the organization's legal council provide an opinion on the matter. However, this council rejected Iran's request, emphasizing that once the agenda has been predetermined and finalized, it cannot be changed.