Boris Johnson visits Arab countries due to a surge in oil prices

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson visited the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Saudi Arabia on Wednesday to start increasing oil production to keep prices under control due to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Johnson arrived in Abu Dhabi to speak with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed and planned to continue his trip to Riyadh to end the West's dependence on Russian oil.

Johnson will meet with Saudi's de facto leader, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, to make him one of the few Western rulers who have visited Riyadh since Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi was assassinated in 2018.

Johnson promised to raise human rights issues with Prince Mohammed, but emphasized the “very important relationship” between London and the Gulf countries.

He said the visit would increase UK investment in green energy, including the announcement of £1 billion ($1.3 billion) for a project by Saudi energy group Alfanar to produce aviation fuel from waste.

Johnson told the British media, “It's important not just to look at OPEC countries and see what they can do to increase supply.”

“In particular, if we look at Putin's dependence on hydrocarbons, Putin's oil and gas, we can see what mistakes have been made because they could intimidate the West,” he added.

Johnson said he would ask the princes to accuse Russian President Vladimir Putin for his assault on Ukraine.

Saudi Arabia and the UAE, two of the world's largest oil exporters, have established relations with Moscow and avoided going against Russia.

However, before leaving, Johnson said that the impact of Russia's “cruel and unprovoked” attacks would be felt beyond Europe.

- Difficult missions -

He said that as Western sanctions begin to strike, a new United Nations will be needed to prevent them from affecting consumers who have already been affected by the rising cost of living.

“Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are the main international partners in this effort,” he said in a statement.

“We will work with them to ensure regional security, support humanitarian relief efforts, and long-term stabilization of the global energy market,” he added.

Johnson hopes to persuade the Saudi leader to increase oil production in his country in order to lower the price of crude oil.

Russia is the world's largest gas producer and the second largest oil producer after Saudi Arabia.

Despite this, Britain plans to phase out imports of Russian crude oil by the end of the year as part of sanctions against Russia.

However, Torbjörn Saltbet, an analyst at Berisk Maple Croft, told AFP that it would be difficult for Johnson to change Saudi oil policy.

“Saudi Arabia has so far been reluctant to move away from the current OPEC+ framework, where monthly production is expected to increase slightly.” He explained.

He thought the UAE would be “willing to open the keys a little more”.

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