Still, it’s hard to believe that the Saudis did not consider the geopolitical repercussions of their bold gambit. Lower oil prices will mean lower revenues for competing petro-states, two of which—Iran and Russia—are longtime rivals. If a drop in prices politically destabilizes governments in Tehran and Moscow, Riyadh certainly wouldn’t lose any sleep. What’s more, cheaper oil could put more pressure on Iran to reach a nuclear deal and Russia to roll back its operations in Ukraine.
Yet in the end, the motivations behind the Kingdom’s new oil strategy matter less than its likely outcomes, some of which could be quite negative.