OPEC and non-OPEC countries have made a strong start to lowering their oil output under the first such pact in more than a decade, energy ministers said on Sunday as producers look to reduce oversupply and support prices. "The deal is a success ...All the countries are sticking to the deal ...(the) results are above expectations," Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said after the first meeting of a committee set up to monitor the deal. Countries involved in the deal could reduce their output by 1.7 million bpd by the end of the month, Interfax news agency quoted Novak as saying.