RI warned against backing oil embargo<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
The government must not follow calls to use the threat of an
\noil embargo against countries supporting Israel as it would only
\ncause more damage to Indonesia, warned Subroto, a former energy
\nminister and ex-OPEC secretary-general.<\/p>\n
Subroto also said that it was unlikely for Saudi Arabia, the
\nlargest member of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting
\nCountries (OPEC), to support the call because it preferred a
\npeaceful alternative.<\/p>\n
\"It will only do more harm to Indonesia,\" he told The Jakarta
\nPost, pointing out that the U.S., seen as the primary supporter
\nof Israel, could use its anti-terrorism campaign against
\nIndonesia if it supports the oil embargo threat.<\/p>\n
Iraq and Iran urged Arab nations and Muslim oil-producing
\ncountries on Tuesday to launch a concerted oil embargo to help
\nforce Israel out of Palestinian territory. The call was made at
\nthe Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC) foreign ministers
\nconference in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.<\/p>\n
Indonesia has the largest Muslim population in the world, and
\nit is also a member of OPEC, which supplies more than 20 million
\nbarrels per day (bpd) of crude oil to the 76 million bpd global
\nmarket.<\/p>\n
An oil embargo was last used by Arab nations in 1973 and that
\nboosted oil prices and severely hit the economies of Western
\ncountries.<\/p>\n
As the U.S. and other developed nations are struggling to lift
\nthemselves out of the current economic downturn, a jump in oil
\nprices will have severe implications to these economies.<\/p>\n
Oil prices steadied at six-month highs on Tuesday amid a cool
\nresponse from oil countries to Iraq's threat to cut off supplies
\nto the West.<\/p>\n
International benchmark Brent crude oil was hovering at
\nUS$26.78 per barrel.<\/p>\n
But OIC oil-producing members seemed to be less enthusiastic
\nin supporting calls for an oil embargo.<\/p>\n
\"We have to be realistic when talking about using oil as a
\nweapon. This is a double-edged sword that will do more harm to us
\nthan the United States both in the short term and in the long
\nterm,\" a Kuwaiti delegate told Reuters on the sidelines of the
\nOIC conference.<\/p>\n
Indonesian Minister of Justice and Human Rights Yusril Ihza
\nMahendra, who attended the OIC meeting, also said that the use of
\noil as a weapon was \"quite impossible\".<\/p>\n
\"It is not easy to reach a consensus in OPEC on the oil price,
\nit would be even more difficult to agree on an oil embargo. I
\nthink it would be quite impossible,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Instead of supporting an oil embargo, the Indonesian
\ngovernment urged the United Nations Security Council to launch
\nconcrete efforts to deal with the heated situation in Ramallah,
\nin the West Bank.<\/p>\n
Foreign ministry spokesman Marty Natalegawa said Indonesia was
\nready to support such actions under the auspices of the UN.<\/p>\n
\"We would like the security council to see through their own
\ndecisions. Indonesia will contribute ideas and support concrete
\nefforts made by the security council,\" Marty told The Jakarta
\nPost on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
The UN security council has issued Resolutions No. 242, 338
\nand 425, which acknowledge the existence of the Palestinian state
\nand urge the Israelis to return land they have seized.<\/p>\n
Recently, the UN security council issued a resolution urging a
\n\"meaningful cease-fire\" and the withdrawal of Israeli troops from
\nconflict-prone areas due to the heated situation in Ramallah.<\/p>",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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