Riyadh:
Amid Iran’s continued attacks on the energy facilities of its Middle Eastern neighbours, Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister, Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, has warned Tehran that tolerance of his country and other Gulf states is limited, saying the strikes are “a blatant attempt at blackmail”. Riyadh also called Tehran to immediately “recalculate” its strategy, saying Saudi Arabia and other neighbouring states have “very significant capacities and capabilities” that could be drawn on should they “choose to do so”.
The threats came after Saudi Arabia on Thursday said it intercepted and destroyed four ballistic missiles that were launched towards Riyadh just before the regional and Islamic foreign ministers met in the Saudi capital.
“For me, it was clear that the attack today was timed with this meeting, in order to attempt to intimidate those present, to send out the message that Iran will not stop,” Al Saud said, according to a report by Al Jazeera.
In the harshest comments to come out of the Gulf kingdom in nearly three weeks of war, Al Saud accused Iran of premeditated hostile actions against its neighbours, both directly and via an array of regional proxies, which he urged Tehran to rein in.
“The level of accuracy in some of this targeting — you can see it in our neighbours as well as the kingdom — indicates that this is something that was premeditated, preplanned, preorganised and well thought out,” he said.
The Saudi leader stressed that the Gulf states are not “intimidated” by the Iranian attacks, saying, “We were not in any way convinced that Iran can be a legitimate partner when it behaves this way.”
“What little trust there was has been completely shattered,” he added
Message To Iran
The Saudi Foreign Minister said Iran’s justifications for targeting its neighbours are ‘unconvincing.’ He also threatened Tehran with counterattacks if Iran continues its strikes
“I’m not going to lay out what would and would not precipitate a defensive action by the Kingdom [of Saudi Arabia] because I think that is not a wise approach to signal to the Iranians,” Al Saud said
“But I think it’s important for the Iranians to understand that the kingdom, but also its partners who have been attacked and beyond, has very significant capacities and capabilities that they could bring to bear should they choose to do so,” he added.
“The patience that is being exhibited is not unlimited. Do they [the Iranians] have a day, two, a week? I’m not going to telegraph that…I would hope they understand the message of the meeting today and recalculate quickly and stop attacking their neighbours. But I am doubtful they have that wisdom.”
War In Middle East
Saudi Arabia’s warning came after Iran intensified its attacks on its Gulf Arab neighbours’ energy infrastructure, setting Qatari, Emirati and Saudi oil and gas facilities ablaze as it hit back following an Israeli attack on its main natural gas field, a major escalation in the Middle East war that has sent global fuel prices soaring.
Qatar, a key source of natural gas for world markets, said firefighters had put out a blaze at the world’s largest LNG facility after it had been hit by Iranian missile attacks. Authorities in Abu Dhabi said the country had been forced to shut down operations at its Habshan gas facility and Bab field, calling Iranian overnight attacks on the sites a “dangerous escalation” of the war.
Saudi Arabia also reported downing Iranian drones targeting its natural gas facilities overnight, and authorities in Abu Dhabi said it had been forced to shut down its Habshan gas facility and Bab field after interceptions over the sites.
