At a press conference in New York, Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Sa’ud al-Faisal rejected a call by Iran to use the oil weapon to pressure allies of the U.S. and of Israel because of the war in Gaza.
He said, “Oil exporters need oil revenues and will not do so.”
In response to a statement by an Iranian military leader who called on Arab and Muslim countries to suspend the export of oil, Prince Sa’ud said: “The use of oil, particularly at this juncture, appears as an idea that has lost its value at least for now, and the important point is that oil is not a weapon.”
Prince Sa’ud added, "We cannot change the conflict by using oil.” He asserted that “oil exporters need to build their countries’ capabilities with the help of this means [i.e. oil] if they are to meet challenges against them."
(See "Iran, Bahrain Call To Use Oil As Weapon To End Gaza Fighting")
Source: Al-Sharq Al-Awsat, January 8, 2009
