US committed to regional stability; ball in Iran's court

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US committed to regional stability; ball in Irans court
Frank Fannon, assistant secretary, Bureau of Energy Resources, US Department of State

Published: Tue 12 Nov 2019, 6:23 PM

Last updated: Tue 12 Nov 2019, 8:28 PM

The US is committed to maintaining stability in the Middle East and Iran need to mend its ways, a top official said in Abu Dhabi.
Frank Fannon, assistant secretary, Bureau of Energy Resources, US Department of State, said the administration is offering support to ensure stability in the region.
"Energy is foundational to political stability. Governments, leading companies have recognised importance of stable energy markets. Two months ago that system was put to test. The attack on Saudi Arabia's energy complex was directed at the Kingdom. However, the perpetrators' target was all of us - the global energy consumer. Aramco's remarkable response reassured markets," he said in his opening remarks at the Abu Dhabi International Petroleum Exhibition and Conference.
Fannon noted that deployment of additional troops in Saudi Arabia and the region was an important to enhance the defence network.
"The US is committed to maintaining bilateral relations with countries in the region. The Middle East Strategic Alliance (MESA) is new commitment the US is offering to the region. The support of sending troops and other assets to the region is further demonstration of our commitment here. We are committed to this region and want to continue to promote growth and stability. We have so many strong partnerships throughout the region. This relationship has stood the test of time and I confident it will continue to do so," he said while speaking on the topic: Shifting global oil and gas market dynamics.
Fannon underlined that Saudi Arabia's nuclear ambitions and other countries in the region tend to 'diversify their economies' and wasn't a threat.
He noted that over the past few decades the US has shifted from energy scarcity to abundance.
"There's unprecedented energy transformation both in terms of supply-demand patterns and technologies to meet that demand. The US is in line to produce 13 billion barrels next month. The US will be top LNG export in next five years. Scale of the US technology is changing market economics."
Talking about US' sanction over Iran, he said: "The ball's in Iranian regime's court. The US administration is very clear on the conditions and encouraging talks but there are certain conditions that need to be met. The many proxy wars are creating instability in the region."
- ashwani@khaleejtimes.com

by

Ashwani Kumar

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