An upcoming Saudi investment conference has not invited US officials as a rift is widening between Washington and Riyadh, which appears to be gravitating toward Russia amid a worsening energy crisis in the West.
Faraan: Saudi Arabia will host the Future Investment Initiative (FII), a three-day conference set to begin on October 25 in the capital Riyadh, but the forum’s organizer said that unlike previous years, US officials were not invited to the upcoming event. Richard Attias, CEO of the group behind the event, announced on Monday that his group “didn’t invite any US government” figures, arguing that he did not want the gathering “to become a political platform.”
“We are not inviting too many politicians… because I realized that when you have political leaders on stage, the attention of the media, let’s be very frank, is diverted to the political agenda, and we don’t want FII to become a political platform,” he added. Attias said that FII – often referred to as “Davos in the Desert” – typically draws Wall Street titans and high-ranking officials from around the world, and up to 400 American CEOs are expected to participate this year.
Tensions rose between the two countries following Saudi pressure on the OPEC Plus alliance last week to cut oil production by 2 million barrels per day. The decision in not inviting US officials to the conference comes as tensions are growing between longtime partners Washington and Riyadh over the Saudi-led OPEC+ cartel’s recent vote to reduce oil production over Washington’s objections. Washington has become the world’s top supporter of Ukraine against Russia, after Moscow launched a military offensive in the former Soviet republic in February.
