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By Jamie Dettmer, VOA

WASHINGTON- Iranian hard-liners are lashing out at Saudi Arabia, accusing it of conspiring with the West to keep oil prices low in a bid to harm the Islamic Republics economy and pressure the country to conclude a nuclear deal with West. In retaliation, Iranian hawks are urging restive Shia Muslims in eastern Saudi Arabia to rebel against the ruling House of Saud.

Front page of Iranian daily Mardomsalari

Iranian hawks accusations have mounted over the Saudis refusal to cut production - in an effort to maintain its share of the global oil market - fueling the precipitous slide in prices. Crude oil prices have fallen by more than half since June, from $115 a barrel to below $50.

"We will not forget which countries schemed to lower the price of oil," the speaker of Irans parliament, Ali Larijani warned darkly during a visit last month to Damascus, the Syrian capital.

U.S. officials deny any collusion between Washington and Riyadh.

"The Saudis learned their lesson from the past when they curbed production to help keep oil prices high, only to see Russia and Venezuela grab some of their market share," said a senior U.S. State Department official, who declined to be named.

The real targets of Saudi Arabias decision not to cut production and to contribute to the falling price of oil are Americas shale oil producers, the official argued.

American oil production

Thanks to shale oil, America has become the worlds largest oil producer, an emergence that has reshaped the worlds energy market.

Originally posted here:
Iran Accuses Saudis of Oil Conspiracy