The crown princes of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates both refused to take calls with US President Joe Biden in recent weeks, the Wall Street Journal reports.
The reported snubs by Riyadh’s Mohammed bin Salman and Abu Dhabi’s Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan, both the de facto leaders of their countries, came as Biden was attempting to rally allies around sanctions against the Russian President Vladimir Putin before he invaded Ukraine while keeping oil flowing. The two were said to have been reacting to unhappiness about Biden’s policies in the region.
According to the report, both agreed to take calls with Putin.
Saudi Arabia has said it is not abandoning an agreement with Russia to control oil prices, even as sanctions have sent costs at the pump rocketing to near-record highs.
