Russian President Vladimir Putin and Saudi Crown Prince Mohamed had a telephone conversation on Saturday and both sides made "positive comments" on OPEC+ cooperation to stabilize the global oil market, the Kremlin said in a statement.

Russia said the phone call was initiated by Saudi Arabia. This is the second dialogue between the two leaders since the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. The two sides also discussed the crises in Ukraine and Yemen.

Saudi Arabia said in a statement that the crown prince had "received" a call from Putin, but the statement did not specifically mention OPEC+ or energy cooperation. Saudi Arabia said in a statement that "the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia supports efforts to resolve the crisis in Ukraine through politics and to achieve security and stability."

With international oil prices soaring, Saudi Arabia and other major oil-producing countries in the Persian Gulf have so far refused to respond to calls from Europe and the United States to increase production.

OPEC Secretary General Mohammad Barkindo said that the current global oil market crisis caused by the conflict between Russia and Ukraine is not under the control of the organization.

OPEC3's oil production rose by just 90, 000 b / d to 28.6 million b / d in the month, according to a Bloomberg survey. It is much lower than the previous target of 253000 b / d, while OPEC+ 's target is 400000 b / d. At a time when the US and the west are burning the crisis in Ukraine, OPEC members are struggling with oil supplies as disruptions in oil supplies from African members partially offset increased production by Saudi Arabia and other major oil producers.

Energy sanctions against Russia by Europe and the United States continue.

European officials are drafting an embargo on Russian oil products, the most controversial punitive measure to date, and the move has long been resisted because of its huge costs to Germany, the New York Times reported. European think tanks have also repeatedly warned that sanctions on Russian energy and the German economy will fall into a "severe recession".

Earlier this month, EU officials reached a decision to ban Russian coal, bringing global coal prices to an all-time high. The EU is now likely to adopt a similar phased ban on Russian oil, so countries that are heavily dependent on Russian energy, such as Germany, will have time to seek alternative energy providers. It is reported that the proposed EU embargo will be negotiated after the final round of the French general election on April 24 at the earliest.