Japan Urges UAE to Expand Crude Oil Supply

Tokyo, March 21 (Jiji Press)--Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi, in Sunday's talks with his counterpart from the United Arab Emirates, Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, asked the UAE to expand its crude oil supply and secure spare productive capacity. Hayashi made the request after expressing concern about surging crude oil prices amid the Ukrainian crisis. Abdullah indicated the UAE's desire to cooperate in efforts to stabilize the crude oil market. Japan depends on the UAE for around 30 pct of its crude oil imports. Also in their talks in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the UAE, the two foreign ministers shared the view that the use or threat of nuclear weapons by Russia cannot be tolerated and agreed to respond to the situation in a coordinated manner. END