India, April 28 -- The United Arab Emirates has announced on Tuesday that it will leave OPEC (Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) and its wider OPEC+ alliances effective from May 1, 2026. And this decision marks the most significant shifts in global oil politics in years.

OPEC was founded on September 14, 1960 in Baghdad, Iraq by five countries: Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Venezuela. Its headquarters shifted from Geneva to Vienna in Austria, in 1965 and it's still there.

The number of countries in the cartel has been changing over the years but in addition to the five founding members it also includes Algeria, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Libya, Nigeria and the Republic of the Congo.

The UAE joined the OPEC in 1967...