Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman told Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in a telephone conversation that the kingdom will contribute to the stabilization of the global oil market, the Japanese government said on Thursday.
Global supply shortages and geopolitical tensions in Eastern Europe and the Middle East have pushed oil prices up around 15% so far this year.
Kishida said that Japan would like to work with Saudi Arabia to stabilize the oil market, according to a written summary of the conversation between the two leaders.
The prime minister, who took office in October, also told the Saudi leader that Tokyo intends to support the kingdom’s industrial diversification and other reform efforts, according to the summary.