I wonder if this is connected to the fact that three days ago, the 50 year petrodollar agreement with Saudi expired. No evidence that Biden team even tried to renew the agreement. It means the dollar is no longer required for the purposes of buying oil on the international market.. Russia and China have already agreed to carry out their large bilateral petroleum trade in yuan. Other BRICS countries may be expected to follow.
I think the Saudis are balking on the agreement Blinkin proposed. The US demands an all-or-nothing agreement with no wiggle for negotiations. There is an article on CNN but I do not think I can post it on FR. I’ve lost track of what can and what cannot be posted from which website.
https://www.reuters.com/world/blinken-says-us-saudi-pacts-could-be-weeks-away-completion-2024-05-22/
MBS shows he is able to throw sand in the machinery. He has Russia and China to fall back on. And the rest of the BRICS.