US sources reveal White House measures against Saudi Arabia to reduce oil production

US sources reveal White House

measures against Saudi Arabia in response to decision to cut oil production

The US administration has discussed slowing military aid to Saudi Arabia, including delaying deliveries of shipments of Patriot missiles, as part of punitive measures against the kingdom in response to the decision to cut oil production.

NBC News

• reported that some military officials supported the idea

• but others felt that the military relationship between Washington

• and Riyadh should be isolated from any reprisals.

The United States Network stated that Saudi Arabia

had a contract for the purchase of 300 guided missiles (GEM-T) used in Patriot 104-E air defence systems, which were critical for Saudis facing persistent missile and drone threats by the Houthis.

The Saudis

have Patriot launch systems but need to resupply missiles to intercept future threats.

Some military commanders are concerned that delaying the delivery of Patriot missiles to Saudi Arabia could endanger American troops and civilians in the Kingdom, as well as pose a threat to regional defence and security relations, according to the network.

Current and former military officials said they had brought

1. the case to senior White House officials
2. informing them of
3. the need to separate military relations

from other issues

1. which was in line with what previous U.S.
2. administrations had done
3. when diplomatic differences occurred.

The US officials and the source are aware that there are many options on the table, but no decision has yet been taken and no decisions are likely in the near future.

They noted that the upcoming OPEC

meeting in December would be the turning point, saying that if the Saudis raise production after the meeting, the United States could take no action against Saudi Arabia at all.

The officials

said another option on the table was to exclude the Saudis from any future military exercises and engagements, such as regional meetings or conferences.

The officials stressed that the Saudis are still likely to participate in an upcoming military exercise and some other regional commitments over the next few weeks.

Current and former officials have confirmed that

there are still no serious discussions on changing the nature of U.S. troop presence in Saudi Arabia at this time, but noted that the Biden administration began discussing issues related to the U.S.

troop presence in Saudi Arabia immediately after the decision to cut oil production, such as the number of soldiers, what they are doing there and the cost of their deployment in Saudi Arabia.

Officials said the White House

was angry and actually wanted to punish the Saudis, but it was complicated given that other partners and allies in the region were counting on Saudi Arabia.

One US

official said there must be a balance between punishing Saudi Arabia and not making things more difficult or dangerous for the US.

One White House official said that while changes to security assistance to Riyadh were being considered, President Joe Biden's administration was not in a rush to make a decision.

The OPEC + alliance of

OPEC members decided in early October to cut official supply by 2 million barrels per day from November 1.