New Delhi: The US overtures to three troublesome oil giants may, at best, stabilize rising oil and gas prices and move those nations closer to the West and away from Russia and China, according to the Biden administration.
As global fuel prices reach jarring levels amid the Ukraine crisis, three checkered oil regimes that have been spurned by US President Joe Biden and previous US leaders — Venezuela, Saudi Arabia, and Iran — are suddenly targets of US outreach. But it’s not obvious that US diplomacy will be able to bring more crude oil onto the market quickly enough to alleviate the current supply shortage or entice previously spurned oil states away from lucrative relationships with Russia.
In the worst-case scenario, Biden faces humiliating retorts and criticism for reaching out to nations accused of human rights violations and violence.
“We have a global interest in maintaining a… steady supply of energy, including through diplomatic effort,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Wednesday, referring to moves toward countries that have fallen out of favor with the US or the Biden administration, and in the case of Iran, pose a military threat.
(SMIT SONI)