 Russia has expressed its desire to become an observer to OPEC, which could lead to greater communication that Russia has sought since the oil price crash in 2014.In 2015, it was estimated that Russia working with OPEC would boost the cartel's clout by nearly a third.Russia and OPEC have made several oil production cutback agreements to raise the price of oil since March 1999, when a deal was reached as part of an agreement between OPEC and non-OPEC oil producers to lift crude prices off their lows.