Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro on Thursday blamed Washington for the slump in global oil prices.
Washington is "flooding" the market with cheaper shale oil to bring down prices and ultimately impact Russia and other oil-producing nations, Maduro said at a televised Cabinet meeting.
"The U.S. and its allies want to affect oil prices to harm Russia, which produces around 10 million barrels per day, and that is the vital income of their economy," said Maduro.
Market analysts say a 20-percent dip in oil prices since June is driven by lower economic growth and weak demand for crude in Europe, along with signs that the core Gulf members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries are in no hurry to cut production.
Maduro called for an extraordinary meeting of the group to explore ways to stabilize international oil prices.