Biden is more desperate than ever.
As oil prices soar, reports have surfaced that President Joe Biden may be making his way to Saudi Arabia in the coming months in search of oil.
According to an Axios report, the consensus among Biden’s advisers is that this trip will serve as an opportunity for the President to mend the U.S.’s relationship with the Islamic nation. The purpose of the trip would be to get Saudi Arabia to produce more oil to offset losses that would be incurred should the U.S. ban the purchase of oil from Russia.
The meeting coincides with Americans battling the worst inflation in 40 years and gas prices climbing to record heights. It also comes a few months after Biden touted renewable energy as the solution to climate change and shut down the Keystone XL oil pipeline because it was the “greatest threat” to that endeavor.
Biden’s critics have been quick to point out current events and soaring oil costs as proof that energy independence is critical.
Energy is so crucial to the country that when the Biden administration boasted about its treasure trove of sanctions against Russia, the Treasury Department made it clear that blocking transactions with Moscow included a carve-out that enabled the purchase of oil. They may be looking to close that loophole with the help of oil from Saudi Arabia.
But to convince Saudi Arabia to produce more oil will require the U.S. to mend the fractured relationship caused when Biden released an unclassified report that proved Saudi Arabian crown prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) approved the killing of Jamal Khashoggi, a writer for the Washington Post.
The relationship between the two nations turned cold, with MBS taking an issue with the U.S. meddling in his affairs, something he revealed in a recent interview with The Atlantic.
“We don’t have the right to lecture you in America. The same goes the other way,” the prince said.
Discussions with the Islamic nation could be further complicated, given Saudi Arabia has recently made progress on a nuclear deal with Iran, a move that has worried both Democratic and Republican lawmakers.
The White House also remains tight-lipped on whether it will be approaching Saudi Arabia, with a spokesperson saying, “We don’t have any international travel to announce at this time, and a lot of this is premature speculation.”
