Iran threatens to hit Gulf states if US launches new strikes

Highlights

• Iran warns Gulf states US strikes will trigger attacks on them
• Tehran presses Gulf allies to steer Trump back to diplomacy
• Riyadh urged Trump to delay military action, pursue negotiations
• Iran bets infrastructure threats can raise pressure without full-scale war

Iran has warned Gulf states that any new US attack on its territory would trigger retaliation against critical energy infrastructure across the region, according to five sources, as Tehran seeks to raise the cost of military action by threatening Washington's closest regional allies.

The warning was delivered through a flurry of high-level diplomatic contacts after President Donald Trump threatened on 28 July to strike Iran's energy network and infrastructure, the sources said.

Two senior Iranian officials, two Gulf sources and a senior regional diplomat with knowledge of the discussions said Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi spoke with his Saudi, Turkish and Qatari counterparts, as well as Pakistan's army chief. All spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter.

Araqchi urged Washington's Gulf allies to use their influence with Trump to dissuade him from launching renewed strikes, the senior diplomat said, warning that any attack on Iran would prompt retaliation against US assets and energy facilities across the Gulf.

His message was consistent in every conversation, the diplomat said: "We're ready to retaliate, but finding a diplomatic solution is the best way to avoid wider escalation and destruction across the region."

"The Iranian warning was unequivocal: if America targeted Iran's infrastructure, they would retaliate by striking Gulf energy facilities and other regional targets," one Gulf source said.

The diplomatic manoeuvring underscores how Iran is attempting to use the threat of wider regional destruction as leverage against further US strikes, putting Gulf states that host US military bases and depend on energy exports in a difficult position between Washington and Tehran.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman subsequently spoke with Trump, urging him to delay military action, return to negotiations, secure a ceasefire and pursue a diplomatic settlement, the senior diplomat and Gulf sources said.

The warning was intended for every Gulf state, another Gulf source said, but was conveyed primarily through Saudi Arabia and Qatar. Iran has in recent years repaired ties with its Gulf neighbours, including former regional rival Saudi Arabia.

Qatar, Oman and Saudi Arabia have all urged Washington to resume talks with Tehran and avert renewed conflict amid Iranian warnings that another round of US strikes could "turn the region into a fireball", the second Iranian official said.

On 2 August, Trump said he agreed to cancel the attack on Iran "subject to being able to rapidly make a deal".

Threats of wider regional escalation, says Iranian official

"Saudi Arabia believes further escalation will only bring more destruction," the first Gulf source said. "That is why it urged Trump to give diplomacy a chance."

While urging Washington to pursue diplomacy, Riyadh also made clear it would defend itself if threatened. The second Gulf source said Saudi Arabia warned that any attack on its territory would be met with a military response.

Ali Shihabi, a Saudi analyst close to the Royal Court, said the kingdom's assessment is that further escalation is unlikely to achieve the desired result. "The Kingdom believes a combination of proportionate military responses and sustained pressure on Iran in the Strait of Hormuz offers the strongest path towards a practical diplomatic settlement," Shihabi said.

Iran's clerical leadership has repeatedly demanded the closure of US military bases in the Gulf and called on Gulf Arab states to stop sharing intelligence with Washington, which Tehran believes has been used to facilitate attacks against it.

According to one Iranian official, Tehran's warning made clear that any new US strike would be met with attacks on energy facilities, refineries, electricity grids, water infrastructure, transport networks and oil fields across the Gulf.

"The enemy continues to threaten Iranian infrastructure. If Iran suffers damage, it will inflict far greater damage in return," the official said.

"They still remember Saudi Arabia's Aramco," he added, referring to the September 2019 drone and missile attacks on the Abqaiq and Khurais facilities that temporarily knocked out more than half the kingdom's crude oil production and exposed the vulnerability of Gulf energy infrastructure.

By threatening infrastructure critical to Gulf economies, Tehran is seeking to convince both Washington and its Arab partners that another attack on Iran would carry unacceptable economic and strategic consequences, encouraging regional states to press Trump to avoid renewed military action.

From Tehran's perspective, Trump now faces two unpalatable choices, the senior Iranian official said: escalate a conflict that could engulf the Gulf and disrupt global energy supplies, or accept a negotiated outcome that falls short of the decisive victory Washington seeks.

One of the principal obstacles to an agreement, the senior regional diplomat said, is Washington's reluctance to allow Tehran to emerge claiming victory.

"The United States wants something it can present as proof that it won the war," the diplomat said.