US Democrats ask Saudi Arabia to rollback OPEC+ oil output cut decision, warn of action

United States Democrats are reacting sharply to the OPEC+decision to cut oil production by two million barrels of oil per day starting next month.

Calling to re-examine ties with key oil producer Saudi Arabia, the Democrats, as per the Guardian, even issued a fresh ultimatum to the Kingdom, giving it weeks to reverse the decision to reduce oil production, and even threatened it with a potential one-year freeze on all arms sales.

Watch |US President Biden vows 'consequences' for Saudi Arabia over OPEC oil output cut

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Saudi as per AFP is "one of the closest US allies and the biggest single purchaser of top-end US weaponry."

"The President is disappointed by the short-sighted decision ofOPEC+," said National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan and top economic adviser Brian Deese in a statement on Wednesday.

OPEC+ reduction in oil production can raise prices for American consumers and benefit energy exporter Russia whom Biden has been trying to isolate following its invasion of neighbouring Ukraine.

The "disappointment" came just five weeks before midterm elections where the Democrats are hoping to cling to the control of US Congress.

A few analysts as per Guardian have even pointed out that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman could be trying to tip the scales of the critical elections. However, Democrats have downplayed these claims and instead stressed that the "betrayal" would harm all US consumers.

"What galls so many of us in Congress is the ingratitude," said Democratic congressman Ro Khanna, a long time critic of the Kingdom, adding that Saudi gets 73 per cent of its arms from the US and that without US technicians "their airplanes literally wouldn’t fly … we literally are responsible for their entire air force".

(With inputs from agencies)

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