ANKARA, Oct. 21 (Xinhua) -- Türkiye on Friday called for lifting Western sanctions on Iran and Venezuela and slammed the United States for pressuring Saudi Arabia over the OPEC+ decision to cut oil production.
Trying to weaponize energy has become a factor impacting global energy prices, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu told a press conference in Turkish southern Mersin province.
"We see that a country is threatening Saudi Arabia, and this bullying is not correct," he said.
U.S. President Joe Biden last week vowed "consequences" for Saudi Arabia after the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies, collectively known as OPEC+, decided to cut production.
"We don't think it's right for the U.S. to use it this way, as an element of pressure on Saudi Arabia or any other country," Cavusoglu said.
He also said that the world needs Venezuela's oil and natural gas. "They have only just begun to loosen embargoes on Venezuela. On the other side, there have been embargoes on the Iranian oil," the minister added.
The sanctions must be lifted on supplier countries if the world wants the prices to decrease, he said, noting "you can't solve this problem just by threatening one country."
The OPEC+ announced on Oct. 5 that the group would cut production by 2 million barrels per day from November. ■
