Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud ripped Iran on Wednesday over its attacks on its neighboring countries, warning that Saudi Arabia reserves the right to respond militarily.
Speaking to reporters after a meeting of Arab and Islamic foreign ministers, Prince Faisal said that Iran “doesn’t believe in talking to its neighbors", adding that “it tries to pressure its neighbors" and stressed that the pressure is not going to work.
“The kingdom is not going to succumb to pressure, and, on the contrary, this pressure will backfire … politically, will backfire, I believe, morally, and certainly, as we have stated clearly, we reserve the right to take military actions if necessary," he stressed.
Prince Faisal rejected Iran’s claims that its attacks on civilian sites of neighboring countries are linked to the presence of US military bases as “unconvincing".
He further stated that foreign ministers at Wednesday’s meeting in Riyadh agreed that Iran must immediately stop supporting its proxies.
Prince Faisal said the little trust that remained in Iran has been completely shattered.
“Iran’s attacks on neighboring countries were premeditated, and what we are witnessing now confirms this," he said, adding, “I would hope that they understand the message of the meeting today, recalculate quickly and stop attacking their neighbors."
In the wake of the US and Israeli strikes on Iran, the Islamic Republic has launched attacks on its neighbors, including Saudi Arabia.
Several of these attacks targeted the US Embassy in Riyadh, including one in which the embassy was attacked by two drones, causing limited fire and minor material damage to the building.
The Washington Post reported, soon after the start of the strikes on Iran, that President Donald Trump launched the attack on Iran after a weeks-long lobbying effort by the leaders of Israel and Saudi Arabia.
According to the sources, the Saudi Crown Prince made multiple private phone calls to Trump over the past month advocating a US attack, in contrast to his public calls for a diplomatic solution.
Saudi Arabia vehemently denied the report, with a spokesperson for the Saudi embassy in Washington writing, “The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has been consistent in supporting diplomatic efforts to reach a credible deal with Iran."
“At no point in all our communication with the Trump Administration did we lobby the President to adopt a different policy," he added.
More recently, Bloomberg reported that Saudi Arabia has stepped up its direct engagement with Iran in a bid to try and contain the war in the Middle East.