"As for the negotiations, they are carried out, of course, at the ministerial level, we did not hold [talks] with the prince, who is also the defense minister,” Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak told Kommersant FM radio station.
According to Novak, the Russian side believed that Saudi Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources Ali Naimi “until the last moment expressed his leadership’s position that the deal would be agreed.”
Relations between the Sunni kingdom and Iran have been strained since early January when Riyadh severed diplomatic ties with Tehran over an attack on its embassy and consulate in Iran following the execution of a prominent Shiite cleric.
Saudi Arabia continues to insist that Iran, which only recently reappeared in the energy market after years of international sanctions, should be part of any production cuts.
