China to release oil from reservoirs as per its own requirement, affirms Foreign Ministry

Amid soaring fuel prices, China said it would release oil from its reservoirs not in accordance with other nations, but as per its own needs, news agency Sputnik reported citing Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian on Wednesday.

"China will organise the release of oil to the market from state reserves and take other necessary measures to maintain market stability in accordance with its own real needs," Sputnik quoted the spokesman as saying. Furthermore, Lijian added that the ministry will make an announcement at the right time. Notably, the statement from the Chinese government came a day after US President Joe Biden announced the release of 50 million barrels of oil from its strategic reserve, Sputnik reported.

Citing the White House, the news agency said that several other nations would follow suit, including China, India, South Korea, Japan and the UK. "Today, the President is announcing that the Department of Energy will make available releases of 50 million barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to lower prices for Americans and address the mismatch between demand exiting the pandemic and supply," the White House stated on November 23. It is pertinent to mention here that the announcement from two large economies comes at a time when the European, Asian and Western countries are undergoing a severe fuel crisis. Oil prices have surged above 60% this year due to short supply versus demand.

"US must behave friendly in return for favour"

However, Chinese mouthpiece Global Times noted that the Communist Party has different agenda behind the release of oil. According to the Chinese media organisation, it seeks a return of "favour" from the United States. As per GT, it wants that the Biden administration must "behave friendly" with Beijing and refrain from heaping ungrounded stress and cracking down on China in areas where they have no requirement for China's help. "China is keeping in close communication with relevant sides, including both oil consumption and production countries. Beijing wants to make sure that the oil market operates stably over the long term via communication and cooperation," Global Times quoted the Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman as saying during a press conference. 

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