The United States has become the top oil and gas producing country in the world over the past decade, and attacks such as those earlier this month on Saudi Arabia oil facilities no longer create the impact that they would have in years past, Energy Secretary Rick Perry said Tuesday.
"Part of that is because the world has changed," Perry told Fox News' "America's Newsroom." "As we go forward with being able to deliver more product to the market, these events will cause less and less disruption of the energy supply in the world."
The United States has a strategic petroleum reserve of almost 670 million barrels at hand, compared to the Saudi oil reserves of 188 million barrels.
"In the international energy agency membership out there, we have somewhere around 1.5 billion barrels of oil in reserve," said Perry. "So these events where the Iranians think that they can go in and attack an oil facility in Saudi (Arabia) and somehow or other that will cause great disruption, well, we've seen that's not the case."
Such attacks remain a cause for concern, he added, but "this isn't 2007. This is 12 years later, and these types of attacks are going to have less and less impact on the global market."
The attacks did cause some "discombobulation" in the markets, driving up prices somewhat, but they were not as "dastardly" as had been initially concerned, said Perry.
"The key here from the United States and I think our allies' standpoint is that Iran cannot be allowed to get by with this type of activity," said Perry. "You need a coalition effort. The U.K. and the French, coming on with some other allies, will send a clear message today. I know the president will be stronger than garlic when it comes to the message."
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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