RIYADH — Saudi Arabia's Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman expressed his astonishment at accusing the Kingdom of siding with Russia in its war with Ukraine. "We are astonished by the accusations that the Kingdom is standing with Russia in its war with Ukraine. It is telling that these false accusations did not come from the Ukrainian government," the minister said in a statement on his Twitter account. Prince Khalid also reiterated that the OPEC+ decision to cut oil production is a unanimous one, taken purely out of economic motives. "Although the OPEC+ decision, which was taken unanimously, was due to purely economic reasons, some accused the Kingdom of standing with Russia. Iran is also a member of OPEC, does this mean that the Kingdom is standing with Iran as well? he asked. It is noteworthy that Saudi Arabia had previously rejected criticism with regard to the OPEC + decision to cut oil production by two million barrels per day, starting in November. The Foreign Ministry reaffirmed in a statement that the move is based solely on the alliance's primary goal, which is market stability and avoiding volatility. The ministry stated that the Kingdom refuses to consider the OPEC + decision based on political motives against the United States of America. The ministry completely rejected the statements that criticized the Kingdom following the decision.
