00:00The United Arab Emirates says it's going to withdraw from the OPEC oil cartel beginning
00:04May 1st. This is a big blow for OPEC, which was formed decades earlier as a means to control
00:12the prices of crude oil on the international market by setting production targets for its
00:18members. Now, OPEC had faced a series of challenges over recent years that includes
00:23defections of its members. Qatar, another Gulf Arab nation, withdrew a couple of years ago.
00:30It's also faced a real challenge from the United States, which now produces over 13 million
00:35barrels of crude oil alone. That's even more than Saudi Arabia, the heavyweight of OPEC within that
00:42cartel. Now, with this withdrawal, the UAE says it will be able to set its own production levels. It
00:49says it will still be a responsible player within the market, but it also comes amid tensions with
00:55Saudi Arabia over political differences, particularly in the Yemen war, as well as
01:00economic differences as Riyadh tries to draw some of the foreign direct investment that has long made
01:06Dubai a haven for international business. Meanwhile, this is all coming as the whole Middle East is
01:13still reeling from the Iran war. Iran had targeted Gulf Arab oil infrastructure as well as natural gas
01:19sites. And many of these producers in the region are unable to get their oil and natural gas out to
01:26market because Tehran maintains its chokehold on the Stratohormuz.
01:39You
Comments