Joe Biden arrives in Saudi Arabia on Friday for his first visit to the kingdom as the President of America, hoping to convince Riyadh to increase its oil production in an effort to curb rising fuel prices and reduce inflation, according to the French news agency.

Biden had called before his election to treat Saudi Arabia as a "pariah" country after the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018, and pledged upon arriving at the White House to "reset" relations with this strategic partner of the United States, but global circumstances prompted the American president to tone down his rhetoric and put aside human rights concerns, according to the same source.

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries led by Saudi Arabia and its ten partners outside OPEC led by Russia had cut production by millions of barrels during the worst COVID-19 pandemic crisis to avoid flooding the market with quantities of oil that could not be absorbed amid home quarantine measures and health restrictions.

With the economic recovery and increased demand for oil, OPEC Plus decided to gradually reduce its production cuts, adopting in May 2022 a strategy to increase its total production volume in phases.

It is initially expected that the alliance will return to its pre-pandemic production levels after August, which will put an end to the current agreement.

Biden is making his visit ahead of the next OPEC Plus meeting in August, which may result in a new agreement.

However, Stephen Innes, an analyst at SPI Asset Management, said: “It would be very surprising if Saudi Arabia increased its production” at a time when price increases have stimulated Gulf economies.

Saudi Arabia achieved its highest economic growth rate in ten years in the first quarter of the year, with its gross domestic product increasing by 9.6% annually, thanks to the oil sector.

Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan announced during the World Economic Forum in May in Davos that “the kingdom has done all it can,” considering that what is needed is an increase in refining capacity rather than increasing market supplies.

President Joe Biden also added that the goal of his visit to Saudi Arabia is to strengthen the shared relations between the two countries.

That the reason for his visit to the kingdom goes beyond just considering American interests, pointing out that the visit is an opportunity to correct past mistakes by withdrawing from the region.

The American president also affirmed, in response to a question from Al Arabiya channel, that “Washington will not allow Iran to possess nuclear weapons.”