Russia to stay in OPEC+ despite UAE's exit, says Kremlin

Russia is not planning to leave OPEC+ after the United Arab Emirates (UAE) announced its departure, the Kremlin announced on Wednesday, expressing hopes that the format will be preserved after the UAE's exit.

Russia respects the UAE's "sovereign decision" to withdraw from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), said Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin's Press Secretary, during a daily conference call on Wednesday.

The UAE, the fourth-largest oil producer in OPEC+, said on Tuesday it would leave the alliance of oil-exporting countries on May 1, saying the decision "reflects the UAE's long-term strategic and economic vision and evolving energy profile."

Peskov said Russia expects to maintain "constructive and effective" contacts with the UAE, including on energy issues, and hopes the OPEC+ format will be preserved after the UAE's departure.

"This format helps to substantially, let's say, minimize fluctuations in energy markets and makes it possible to stabilize those markets," Peskov said.

Russia joined OPEC+ in 2016. The county has been the second-largest oil producer in the group behind Saudi Arabia.

The UAE's decision to exit OPEC comes as the Strait of Hormuz, the main artery of global oil and gas trade, remains under blockade.

The UAE Energy Minister Suhail Mohamed al-Mazrouei told Reuters on Tuesday that he expects global demand for energy to rise, hinting that the country could ramp up oil production, which could drive down oil prices after the crisis in the Middle East eases.

(With input from Reuters)