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Ecuador’s decision to withdraw from OPEC came as surprise to organization

The Ministry of Energy and Non-renewable Resources of Ecuador on October 1 announced that the country would quit the OPEC on January 1, 2020

MOSCOW, October 7. /TASS/. Ecuador’s decision to leave OPEC, where it has been a member since 1973, came as a surprise to the organization, OPEC Secretary General Mohammed Barkindo said in an interview with TASS during the Russian Energy Week.

"I was surprised when I received the correspondence from Quito because Ecuador has always been a very strong and valuable member of the organization. I had the honor of visiting climate two years ago and meeting with the new leadership who expressed their continuous support to OPEC. It was therefore a surprise to me and I believe to others," he said.

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The Ministry of Energy and Non-renewable Resources of Ecuador on October 1 announced that the country would quit the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) on January 1, 2020. The ministry noted that the decision was related to the need to achieve "financial stability."

Ecuador joined OPEC in 1973, in 1992 the country suspended its membership in the organization, renewing it in 2007. Ecuador’s oil reserves are estimated at 8.3 bln barrels of oil. Oil production in 2018 was at 517,000 barrels per day.

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US missile defense base in Poland long among Russian army’s targets — Foreign Ministry

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Ukrainian army admits loss of 40% of territories it controlled in Kursk Region — agency

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Lukashenko grants asylum to Schmidt persecuted on political grounds by Poland

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Ukraine should consider territorial concessions to Russia in return for peace — magazine

Foreign Policy pointed out that Western officials should stop insisting in public speeches on the need to achieve a strategic defeat for Russia

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Russian MFA withholds public comment on nominee for new ambassador to US

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France only finishes off Ukraine by allowing it to strike inside Russia — diplomat

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Dmitry Peskov said that he himself did not know about this work before Russian President Vladimir Putin announced it

Russian troops mopping up enemy positions in Yelizavetovka in Donbass region — politician

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Russia’s Oreshnik has no analogues worldwide — Putin

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Kremlin sees US-led West ready to do anything to suppress Russia

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Cyprus submits NATO accession plan to US — report

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T-90M tank shows itself as best in the world in real fight — Medvedev

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