Saudi Arabia’s Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman, warned the energy sector of a shortage in energy supplies due to sanctions and underinvestment in the industry during a conference on 4 February.

When asked how the sanctions environment would impact the energy market, the minister stated, “All of those so-called sanctions, embargoes, lack of investments, they will convolute into one thing and one thing only, a lack of energy supplies of all kinds when they are most needed.”

The minister added that Saudi Arabia was working to send Ukraine liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) to support the energy market.

He also emphasized the importance for the rest of the world to “trust OPEC+,” an alliance that includes members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and other countries, including Russia, which agreed to cut production by 2 million barrels per day to support the market.

Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman also mentioned that OPEC+ was a responsible group of countries that does not engage in political issues but only policy issues relevant to the energy and oil markets.

An OPEC+ panel recently endorsed the decision to remain on course with production cuts until the end of the agreement.

The warning was issued on the same day CNN reported that the Biden administration was taking a U-turn on its course with Saudi Arabia and holding back on previous threats.

CNN cites multiple anonymous sources on Capitol Hill and the White House that claim that President Biden no longer has the interest to follow through on these threats.

The same sources added that officials are “sidestepping the reassessment” of the US-Saudi relationship, despite earlier calls by the White House for a “coordinated review.”

“There is only so much patience one can have when you’ve been asking for a conversation for four months,” a senior Democratic aide told CNN.