On Bended Knee to Riyadh

Despite earlier calling the world’s head-chopping/public whippings capital “a pariah state,” the fake Biden will show up in Riyadh later this week — on bended knee — to push for what the Saudis aren’t likely to deliver.

Under the so-called OPEC+ production agreement, the Saudis reportedly will increase oil production to 11.0 million barrels per day in August.

According to Saudi Aramco, it has a maximum sustainable capacity of 12 million barrels per day — with plans to raise the amount to 13 million daily by 2027.

For one month alone in April 2020, Saudi output was 12 million barrels.

Over an earlier three-month period, it was 10.8 million barrels daily.

Its maximum sustained daily output earlier was on average 10.5 million barrels.

There’s no evidence of its ability or willingness to increase output by a million daily barrels over its current level — to be maintained monthly going forward.

Saudi Aramco never did it before.

At the same time, the Saudis are committed to the OPEC+ agreement with Russia.

Their bilateral relations benefit both countries.

The Saudis are unlikely to jeopardize their own interests to serve hegemon USA’s anti-Russia agenda.

In mid-June, Bloomberg News reported the following:

While the Saudis and other regional oil producers agreed to marginally increase oil production weeks earlier, they’re unlikely to go much further.

According to oil historian Daniel Yergin:

“There isn’t much more oil in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates to really significantly change the market.” 

“The supply situation is so razor thin.”

Other than heavily sanctioned Iran, the Saudis and UAE are the only regional oil producers able to increase output much beyond their current levels — but not daily through yearend into 2023.

Bloomberg explained that maintaining increased production more than marginally above the current level “on a sustained basis (was) rarely if ever seen before” in the kingdom, adding:

If the Saudis and UAE “ramp(ed) up (output), exhausting their spare supplies would only sow fears that no buffer remains to cover future supply emergencies.”

“That’s the last security blanket that exists for the oil market right now,”Yergin explained. 

Even if production is increased, enough refining capacity isn’t available to make gasoline, diesel and jet fuel.

According to Enverus Intelligence Research director Bill Farren-Price:

“Energy price inflation is a bigger problem than crude oil.”

It’s beyond Saudi Arabia and its Gulf counterparts to fix.”

And this reality check from oil analyst Giovanni Staunovo:

“Lack of investment in new supply globally, low inventories, and dwindling spare capacity” are problems with no easy fixes. 

“Oil prices may need to stay supported to trigger demand destruction and bring supply and demand back into balance.” 

Even if the fake Biden is able to heal frayed US/Saudi relations, it won’t resolve what’s keeping energy prices high.

In Riyadh, he’ll meet with king Salman and crown prince MBS (Mohammed bin Salman) — a figure US intelligence accused of murdering journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018.

No matter that months earlier, the White House said the Biden regime will deal only with Saudi king Salman at an “appropriate” time, not MBS.

Later this week, the fake Biden will arrive in Riyadh on bended knee with an olive branch extended to the crown prince in hopes of getting him to increase oil output enough to bring down prices.

Ahead of his visit, WaPo published his ghost-written op-ed explanation of why he’s going to the kingdom.

Saying “(a) more secure and integrated Middle East benefits Americans (sic)” ignored ongoing US occupation of northern and southern Syria in pursuit of forever proxy war on the country — along with war by the empire of lies on Yemen since October 2001, in cahoots with the Saudis over much of this period.

And longstanding US war on nonbelligerent, nonthreatening Iran by other means continues — because its free from imperial control.

And US created and supported ISIS, al-Qaeda and likeminded jihadists continue to be used in the region and elsewhere by the empire of lies as proxy foot soldiers.

And there’s no end to longstanding US support for apartheid Israel at the expense of long-suffering Palestinians.

Both wings of the US war party prioritize advancing the nation’s imperium by forever wars and other dirty tricks — at the expense of world peace, stability and cooperative relations with other countries.

Hegemon USA is an unparalleled menace on the world stage.

The fake Biden’s outreach to MBS is unlikely to achieve what could easily be accomplished by normalizing relations with oil and gas-rich Russia, Iran, and Venezuela.

Yet that option is off-the-table — except for head-fake outreach to the Bolivarian Republic, what’s likely to be short-lived, not long-lasting.