"Suppressing competitors has become the leitmotiv of US economical and foreign policy… The situation around Rusal is a bright example. Through several sanction iterations, the US administration has de facto received control over the company and, subsequently, Russian aluminum industry. Given [that Rusal has a] big stake at Nornickel, [it has also seized control of] nickel, copper, platinum, palladium and other segments of the Russian industry that are related to extraction and production of non-ferrous and precious metals", Sechin said.
"The return of sanctions against Iran, the imposition of sanctions against Venezuela — the country that has the largest oil reserves in the world — as well as sector sanctions against Russian oil and gas firms have resulted in a total volume of liquid hydrocarbons under unilateral restrictions amounting to about a third of the global reserves", Sechin said.
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Sechin further noted that oil production in the United States remains the principal factor determining changes in the world energy markets, including those related to oil prices, and the balance of supply and demand.
"The oil output in the United States remains the main factor of changes in the world energy markets. Ultimately, the supply of liquid hydrocarbons in the world, the balance of supply and demand, oil prices, as well as the prices of all other energy resources, depend on this", Sechin said.
SPIEF opened on Thursday and will run through Saturday. Rossiya Segodnya International Information Agency is an official media partner of the forum.