Saudi Arabia looks set to stand by Russia as a member of the Opec+ group of oil producers.
This comes despite tightening western sanctions on Moscow and a potential EU ban on Russian oil imports.
Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman, the Saudi energy minister, has told the Financial Times that Riyadh was hoping "to work out an agreement with Opec+ which includes Russia", insisting the world should appreciate the value of the alliance of producers.
A new production deal is on the agenda as Opec+ output quotas put in place in April 2020 are set to expire in three months while energy consumers grapple with oil prices at their highest levels in a decade.
Prince Abdulaziz's comments are said to be an important sign of support for Russia from a traditional US ally as the west tries to isolate the country and its oil production falls, raising questions about its place in the Opec+ group.
Riyadh has been resisting western pressure to raise crude output to help bring down prices in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, insisting there is not a lack of supply.
Prince Abdulaziz said it was too early to say what a new agreement might look like given the uncertainties in the market, but added that Opec+ would increase production "if the demand is there".
"With the havoc you see now, it's too premature to try to pinpoint (an agreement)," Prince Abdulaziz said in an interview with the Financial Times.
"But what we know is what we have succeeded to deliver is sufficient for people to say so far there is a merit, there is a value of being there, working together."
Opec+ has stuck to its 2020 agreement, under which the alliance members raise total production each month by the modest amount of 430,000 barrels a day.
But Russia's output has dropped since the start of the Ukraine war, falling from about 11million barrels daily in March to an average of 10million daily in April.
The International Energy Agency predicts it could fall further, declining by as much as 3million barrels daily if western powers impose tougher sanctions to reduce Europe's dependence on Russian energy including a possible EU ban on oil imports.
India, however, has increased Russian oil imports since the war began.
FTSE 100
Meanwhile the UK's top share index, the FTSE 100, was up 67 points at 7,457 shortly after opening this morning. This followed Friday's gain of 87 points.
Companies reporting today
- Full-year results: Big Yellow Group
- First-quarter results: Pershing Square