(CNN)– A White House spokesman said, on Wednesday, that the reduction in oil production from OPEC + does not mean that President Joe Biden’s visit to Saudi Arabia in July was a “waste of time.”
Speaking on Fox News, the National Security Council Communications Coordinator, John Kirby, said the oil-producing bloc is instead “scaling its numbers down a little bit”, after a slight increase after Biden’s visit.
“OPEC+ says and says it actually produces 3 and a half million barrels more than it actually is. So, in some ways, this announced drop brings them back into more alignment with actual production,” Kirby said, noting that there weren’t After dramatic shifts in oil prices.
“We have to see how things go in the long term,” he said.
Kirby noted that Biden’s visit to Jeddah to attend a regional conference, which also included talks with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman “not related to oil.”
“It was about strategic national goals and larger national interest goals across the region to try to foster a more integrated cooperative area,” he added.
Kirby said Biden believes the United States needs to be less dependent on OPEC+ and other foreign energy producers.