Europe rejects U.S. threats over oil reserves, calls for joint G7 action

The United States’ war in Iran has sent energy prices sharply higher, hitting President Donald Trump again at home with high fuel costs, a key issue ahead of next month’s midterm congressional elections.

“We completely reject any oil ban. A ban would not be helpful to anyone. It would undermine our trust in the United States as a reliable partner,” said European Commission spokeswoman Anna-Kaisa Itkonen.

The 27-country bloc was ready to cooperate with the International Energy Agency on a possible release of fuel reserves to contain prices, she added, after crisis talks between member states and the Commission to create a unified response.

Earlier on Friday, French leader Emmanuel Macron spoke with Trump and called on the G7 countries to work together on the issue, while also speaking against any export ban. “The president stressed that the G7 countries had a shared interest in acting in a coordinated way, without export restrictions,” Macron’s office said after his exchange with the U.S. leader.

France aimed to call a video call of G7 leaders “as soon as possible” to ensure coordination, it added.

The frantic diplomatic activity came a day after U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent increased pressure on European countries. “Our European partners must accelerate meeting their existing commitments and immediately make additional supplies available to address the ongoing disruptions,” Bessent wrote on social media. “American farmers, truck drivers and businesses should not be left to bear the burden of the global oil shortage,” he said.

Earlier this week, the head of the International Energy Agency, the IEA, Fatih Birol, said European countries had not yet released part of the reserves they had agreed on in an earlier effort to lower prices in March.

The IEA’s 32 members agreed last March to unlock 400 million barrels of oil from reserves, their largest release ever.

About a third had still not reached the market, Birol said, adding that further releases were possible, with 80 percent of the IEA’s overall stocks “still in the pocket”.

Oil prices in the United States and Europe have reached record levels because of the U.S.–Iran war, with Ukrainian attacks on Russian energy infrastructure also blamed for the price rise.

The issue has emerged as a major obstacle for Trump’s Republican Party in the upcoming midterm elections, in which it risks losing control of Congress.

On Wednesday, Trump dismissed the possibility of a ban on U.S. oil exports, which is used in trucks and other transport vehicles — an alarming prospect for the EU, which relies heavily on fossil-fuel imports.