RIYADH • Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman accused arch-rival Iran of attacks on oil tankers in a vital Gulf shipping channel, adding that he "won't hesitate" to tackle any threats to the kingdom, according to an interview published yesterday.
Two tankers were struck by explosions last Thursday in the Gulf of Oman, the second attack in a month in the strategic shipping lane amid a tense United States-Iran stand-off, sparking fears of a regional conflagration and sending oil prices soaring.
"We do not want a war in the region... But we won't hesitate to deal with any threat to our people, our sovereignty, our territorial integrity and our vital interests," Prince Mohammed told pan-Arab daily Asharq al-Awsat in his first public comments since the attacks.
"The Iranian regime did not respect the presence of the Japanese Prime Minister as a guest in Teheran and responded to his (diplomatic) efforts by attacking two tankers, one of which was Japanese."
The prince also accused "Iran and its proxies" of attacks on May 12 on four tankers anchored in the Gulf of Oman off the United Arab Emirates (UAE) port of Fujairah.
Last Thursday's attack on two tankers - the Japanese-owned Kokuka Courageous and the Norwegian-operated Front Altair - came around the time Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was meeting Iranian leaders in Teheran.
US President Donald Trump has said the twin attacks had Iran "written all over it", rejecting Teheran's vehement denial.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo yesterday said that while it is "unmistakable" that Iran was responsible for the attacks, the United States does not want to go to war with Teheran.
In an interview with Fox News Sunday, he said: "President Trump has done everything he can to avoid war. We don't want war."
But Mr Pompeo added that Washington will guarantee free navigation through vital shipping areas. "The United States is going to make sure that we take all the actions necessary, diplomatic and otherwise, that achieve that outcome," he said.
Saudi Arabia, a close US ally, is a bitter regional rival of Iran.
The US military last Friday released grainy footage it said showed an Iranian patrol boat removing an "unexploded limpet mine" from one of the tankers. The US has also accused Iran of being behind the May 12 sabotage attacks.
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said in a Twitter post that the US had "immediately jumped to make allegations against Iran without a shred of factual or circumstantial evidence".
The UAE's Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan on Saturday called on world powers "to secure international navigation and access to energy", a plea echoed by regional ally Saudi Arabia after the incident sent crude prices soaring.
British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt said London had concluded Teheran was "almost certainly" responsible for last Thursday's attacks, prompting Iran's foreign ministry on Saturday to summon British Ambassador Rob Macaire over Mr Hunt's "false remarks".
Iran has repeatedly warned in the past that it could block the strategic Hormuz Strait in a relatively low-tech, high-impact countermeasure to any attack by the US.
Operators of the two oil tankers crippled in the attacks in the Gulf of Oman yesterday said both vessels are being assessed off the UAE coast before their cargos are unloaded.
Damage assessment on Japan's Kokuka Courageous and preparation for ship-to-ship transfer of its methanol cargo would start after the authorities in Sharjah in the UAE complete security checks, Singapore-based Bernhard Schulte Shipmanagement said. The Kokuka Courageous' 21 crew members were returned to the vessel by the US Navy's Bahrain-based Fifth Fleet after being rescued.
The crew of the Front Altair, who were picked up by Iranian boats, left Iran from Bandar Abbas airport for Dubai International Airport on Saturday, the ship's operator Frontline said. A specialist team will inspect the Front Altair before deciding on how to unload its naphtha cargo.
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, REUTERS
