Russian President Vladimir Putin and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman spoke by phone about OPEC+ cooperation, the Kremlin said.
The two leaders expressed “satisfaction with the level of coordination within OPEC+ in order to ensure the stability of the world oil market,” according to a statement on Friday. The phone call was initiated by Saudi Arabia.
The phone call between the two de facto leaders of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and their allies follows an unexpected round of production cuts that topped a million barrels a day earlier this month. The cuts were led by Saudi Arabia pledging to curb output by 500,000 barrels a day, while Russia extended its current cut until the end of the year.
The surprise cuts were motivated by their interest “in keeping the prices of crude oil and petroleum products at a certain level,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on April 3.
The leaders of Russia and Saudi Arabia also discussed bilateral relations, focusing on further expansion of “mutually beneficial ties in the areas of trade, economy, investment and energy,” according to the Kremlin. They also discussed the prospects of Saudi Arabia’s cooperation with the BRICS nations.
