The cartel officially convened the meeting over the weekend as plunging oil prices forced the organisation to consider a significant production cut. The meeting on Wednesday will be the first physical session since the epidemic forced the group online. Even as Moscow becomes more and more isolated due to the conflict in Ukraine, the alliance led by Saudi Arabia and Russia is anticipated to highlight their long-standing connection.
According to delegates, the group is thinking about reducing oil production by more than 1 million barrels per day because the global economic slowdown threatens to damage demand, prices, and producer nations’ budgets.
Such a significant reduction runs the risk of adding yet another shock to the already struggling global economy. Additionally, it will irritate the US, whose president Joe Biden visited Saudi Arabia earlier this year in pursuit of a new oil agreement and lower gas costs.
In an effort to undermine Vladimir Putin’s military campaign, Biden is also attempting to limit the money Moscow receives from oil sales by enacting a price restriction. The opposite result would likely occur with an OPEC+ cut.
The European Union has difficult perceptions due to Novak’s physical presence in Vienna; the US has sanctioned him, but the EU has not. Austria’s government has refrained from commenting on his participation, stating merely that the bloc has not imposed any sanctions on him.
