Trump Adds to Oil Price Uncertainty, Says if Elected he Could Halt Saudi Oil Purchases

Trump says we're less dependent on Saudi and other Arab nations due to technology plus U.S. oil production.

Halting U.S. purchases from Saudi Arabia and other Arab allies is a foreign policy strategy Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump says he will strongly consider for the sake of contributing to the battle against the Islamic State.

After Trump telling the New York Times that he will rethink traditional U.S. alliances if he becomes president, the billionaire was asked about his plans to defeat ISIS and if he would be willing "to stop buying oil from the Saudis if they're unwilling to go in and help."

Trump replied, "Oh yeah, sure, I would do that.

"The beautiful thing about oil is that, you know, we're really getting close, because of fracking, and because of new technology, we're really in a position that we weren't in years ago, and the reason we're in the Middle East is for oil."

Trump added, "And all of a sudden we're finding out that there's less reason to be."

The Times then asked Trump to verify that he would be unwilling to purchase oil from not only the Saudis but the United Arab Emirates and other allies who to date have been unwilling to send in group troops against ISIS.

Trump replied, "The answer is, probably yes, but I would also say this: we are not being reimbursed for our protection of many of the countries that you'll be talking about, including Saudi Arabia."

He reiterated, "We needed oil desperately years ago; today, because of the new technologies, and because of places that we never thought had oil, there's a glut on the market, there's a tremendous glut on the market, I mean you have ships out at sea that are loaded up and they don't even know where to go dump it."

It's anyone's guess what impact halting purchases from the Saudis would have on prices, but Trump is echoing a rebellious sentiment rarely seen in Washington circles and that was most recently expressed by Joe Barton, Republican congressman for Texas.

Last month, Barton told CNN Money that thanks to U.S. producers now being allowed to ship overseas, production could escalate to as much as 20 million barrels per day in coming years: "Not only will the U.S. industry survive, it will flourish.

"The Saudis can't increase production like that; the Russians can't, the Chinese can't; only the U.S. can."