Nigeria, Saudi Arabia commit to stable oil market

NIGERIA and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) have expressed commitment to a stable oil market and a rebound of oil price.

This resolve formed the crux of discussion yesterday between President Muhammadu Buhari and King Salman Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud in the second day of the President’s state visit to the Kingdom.

At an elaborate bilateral meeting between the two countries in Riyadh hosted by the monarch, the two leaders were united on the fact that their two economies are tied to oil and that all could not be well with both countries when the world oil market is unstable. They, therefore, resolved to commit themselves to doing all possible things to stabilise the market and rebound the oil price.

The two leaders, who engaged in extensive discussions on regional and global issues, also agreed that terrorism posed a common threat to their states and would require close co-operation to prevail over the threats.

President Buhari, who commented on the invitation to join the Coalition of Islamic States against terror spearheaded by the Saudi government, described the initiative as apt and expressed confidence that Nigerian government would fully support the coalition.

His words: “Even if we are not a part of it, we support you. I must thank the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for the recent creation of a coalition to address the menace of international terrorism. Nigeria will support your efforts in keeping peace and stopping the spread of terror in your region.

“This is in consonance with our own commitment and on-going efforts in seeking to stamp out Boko Haram terrorists from the West African sub-region and Lake Chad Basin Commission (LCBC).”

He, therefore, thanked the Saudi government for its continuing support to Nigeria in the fight against terrorism.

The leaders also focused on trade between their states and agreed to give fresh impetus to the joint commission previously established in order to boost commercial and other activities to unify their peoples.

In his remarks, King Salman commended the progress made by Nigeria in combating terrorism and promised to give further support and assistance.