US Allies to Release Nearly 60M Barrels of Oil from Reserves
The Facts
On Wed., it was reported that members of the International Energy Agency (IEA) plan to release an additional ~60M barrels of oil from strategic reserves to curb a rise in oil and gas prices worldwide.
The 31-member IEA consists of the US and allies such as most of Europe, Australia, Japan, and Mexico. The IEA will release a total of 120M barrels (including a percentage of the US-announced release from last week), which is the most in its 47-year history.
The Spin
Republican narrative
Biden is letting visions of green energy drive this gas price shock. It's outrageous that the US may be considering imports from anti-American nations like Iran and Venezuela. Biden needs to open up domestic drilling asap - all the oil that Americans need is already under their feet.
Democratic narrative
It's wrong to blame Biden. COVID and its cascading effects drove the energy crisis - not drilling leases, the Keystone pipeline, or green energy. OPEC+ held back supply as pandemic restrictions relaxed, and the Russia-Ukraine war only adds complexity. US Presidents have very little impact on short-term supply, and the right's argument is disingenuous.
Progressive narrative
The invasion of Ukraine could speed up the world's transition to renewable energy. The planet's dependence on fossil fuels has to weaken; this may hasten the inevitable.
Anti-Russia narrative
The ban on importing Russian oil was welcome news. Despite sanctions in every other sector, Western nations have been continuing to pay hundreds of millions of dollars every day for Russian oil and gas. The failure to impose oil sanctions has bankrolled the invasion of Ukraine, human suffering, and atrocities.
Establishment-critical narrative
It's hypocritical to impose sanctions on Russia for invading Ukraine, but not on the US for invading Iraq for equally unjustified reasons, or on Israel for invading and annexing Arab lands.
