Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadi-nejad has thanked the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for the excellent arrangements made for the third OPEC summit, which ended its deliberations here yesterday. Addressing a press conference here last night the Iranian President said the summit had reviewed the most important issues pertaining to energy and taken good decisions in this respect. Pointing out to the impact of the international pressures on petroleum prices, he noted that the unfair dealing with energy reserves has led to several problems for the time being and will lead to problems in the future. Ahmadinejad said the establishment of OPEC is aimed at protecting this valuable wealth and confronting plans and programs which had affected the petroleum market. "The oil consuming countries in the west have been levying high taxes on oil and levying other taxes on commodities which are produced in our countries , then they say why do you raise the prices of oil,' he elaborated. The Iranian President reiterated that OPEC was not behind the rise in prices, and the western countries do benefit from the existing difference between the price of production and the price for the consumers in the west. "OPEC member states have been producing and exporting oil for 47 years, and it seems that these countries obtain large revenues, but if we think deeply we will realize that the economies of these countries are economies of consumption which are liable for losses."
