(London) British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will visit the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia on Wednesday, “key partners” to calm the global energy market after the invasion of Ukraine and help the West turn away from hydrocarbons Russians.
Posted at 6:39 p.m.
Boris Johnson will meet the de facto ruler of the United Arab Emirates, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed, in Abu Dhabi, then hold talks in Saudi Arabia with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, hoping to win them over to the coalition against Moscow and convince them to increase their oil production.
Mr Johnson’s move to Saudi Arabia is highly controversial, however, due to the kingdom’s poor human rights record.
Stressing that Russia’s “brutal and unprovoked attack” on Ukraine would have consequences “far beyond the borders of Europe”, Boris Johnson said in a statement that he wanted to build an “international coalition” to make in the face of this “new reality”.
“The world must wean itself off Russian hydrocarbons” in order to deprive Russian President Vladimir Putin of oil and gas revenues, he added.
“Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are key international partners in this effort,” the conservative leader stressed. “We will work with them to ensure regional security, support the humanitarian aid effort and stabilize global energy markets over the longer term.”
The G7 countries, including the United Kingdom, had on Thursday called on oil and gas producing countries to “increase their deliveries” to cope with rising energy prices due to the war in Ukraine and the sanctions imposed on Russia.
According to Downing Street, the discussions will focus on “efforts to improve energy security and reduce the volatility of energy and food prices which affect British businesses and consumers”, already facing a rising cost of living, as well as the “regional stability” in the Middle East.
The United States and the United Kingdom have decided to stop their imports of Russian gas and oil, while the much more dependent EU is organizing to reduce its gas purchases from Moscow by two thirds this year. .
Faced with criticism from human rights defenders of the move to Saudi Arabia, particularly after the execution of 81 death row inmates on Saturday, a spokesman for Boris Johnson said the UK was “firmly opposed to the death penalty, in all circumstances in all countries”.
He assured that the leader would discuss the executions with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, also accused of ordering the assassination of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, a fierce critic of Saudi power, in 2018.
“We consistently raise human rights issues with other countries, including Saudi Arabia, and we will raise Saturday’s executions with the government in Riyadh,” he said.
In a column published Tuesday in the Daily TelegraphBoris Johnson called on Western countries to cut their dependence on Russian hydrocarbons, saying they had made a “terrible mistake” in letting Vladimir Putin “get away with it” after the annexation of Crimea in 2014 and becoming “ more dependent” on Russian gas and oil.
“When he finally launched his cruel war in Ukraine, he knew the world would have a hard time punishing him. He knew he had created an addiction,” he lamented.
Boris Johnson also plans to present the government’s energy security strategy in the coming weeks, with a focus on renewable energy, and on the drilling of hydrocarbons in the North Sea, which would help reduce the UK’s energy dependence. and achieve its goal of net zero emissions by 2050.
According to Torbjorn Soltvedt, an analyst at Verisk Maplecroft interviewed by AFP, the United Arab Emirates may be more willing than Riyadh to open the oil taps.