Opec-plus officials have made a number of public statements of unity in recent days, in an apparent effort to display solidarity and counter US criticism about the group's decision to cut its targeted production by 2 million barrels per day.
US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby claimed last week that some Opec nations had privately told the Biden administration that they "disagreed with the Saudi decision" to cut output from November, "but felt coerced to support Saudi's direction."
Oil officials and energy ministers from Oman, Bahrain, the UAE, Algeria, Kuwait and Iraq all made statements on Sunday and Monday supporting the decision to cut output, which they stressed was made unanimously by the 23-state member alliance.
"I would like to clarify that the latest Opec-plus decision, which was unanimously approved was a pure technical decision, with no political intentions whatsoever," UAE Energy Minister Suhail al-Mazrouei tweeted on Monday.
Iraq's state oil marketer Somo issued a statement on Sunday saying there was full consensus within the group.
"The best approach in dealing with the oil market conditions during the current period of uncertainty and lack of clarity is a pre-emptive approach that supports market stability and provides the guidance needed for the future," the Somo statement said.
Ministers from Algeria, Oman and Kuwait delivered similar statements expressing support for the alliance and its decision.
Several Opec-plus delegates told Energy Intelligence last week that there was no evidence of dissent during the group's meeting.
However, some sources suggested that private communications about disagreement within Opec-plus could represent an attempt by some states to limit the impact of the backlash on their relations with the US.
Criticism Targets Riyadh
Since the announcement of the decision, US criticism has focused on Opec kingpin Saudi Arabia, with some alleging that Riyadh is effectively aligning itself with Russia over the war in Ukraine.
Kirby, for example, said Saudi Arabia knew the cut “would increase Russian revenues and blunt the effectiveness of sanctions." Several US lawmakers were more blunt.
Saudi officials have denied such claims and say that Saudi Arabia and other Opec-plus members were protecting their own national interests without regard for the politics of the situation around the war in Ukraine.
"We are astonished by the accusations that the kingdom is standing with Russia in its war with Ukraine. It is telling that these false accusations did not come from the Ukrainian government," Saudi Defense Minister Khalid bin Salman tweeted.
Aid for Ukraine
On Saturday Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman announced $400 million in humanitarian aid for Ukraine, according to state news agency SPA.
The previous day, Prince Mohammed spoke with Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy by telephone, and expressed the kingdom's position "of supporting everything that will contribute to de-escalation, and the kingdom's readiness to continue the efforts of mediation," SPA reported.
US President Joe Biden has no plans to meet with Prince Mohammed at the G20 meeting in Indonesia next month, US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan told CNN on Sunday.
He said that a planned reassessment of the Saudi-US relationship — mentioned by Biden in response to the Opec-plus decision — would be conducted "methodically" and would include bipartisan consultations.
There would be no major changes until after Congress returns from recess, Sullivan added.
For more coverage of the Ukraine crisis, visit Ukraine Crisis: Energy Impact