September Net

Saudi Arabia’s King Salman told an emergency Gulf Arab meeting on Thursday that Iran’s development of nuclear and ballistic missile capabilities threatened regional and global security.

He said Tehran’s actions threatened international maritime trade and global oil supplies in a “glaring violation of UN treaties”, following attacks this month on oil tankers off the United Arab Emirates and on oil pumping stations in the Kingdom.

“We will work together to face all challenges… The Iranian regime has been interfering in other countries’ affairs, developing their nuclear programs and threatening international navigation,” King Salman said during his speech.

King Salman added that Iran has been threatening security in the region for four decades, stating that not taking a stand against its activities has led to its transgressions.

He added that Saudi Arabia is keen on the security and stability of the region, and to avoid the horrors of war, and that “the Kingdom’s hand will always be extended to peace”.

Following the King’s speech, the GCC’s Secretary-General Abdullatif Al-Zayani said that the Gulf summit is taking place under “a regional situation that foresees serious risks”.

The first of three summits kicked off on Thursday with the aim of addressing Iranian threats and tensions following the sabotage of Saudi oil tankers off the UAE coast, a rocket strike near the US Embassy in Baghdad, and a coordinated drone attack on Saudi Arabia by Yemen’s Iran-allied Houthi militia.

A day earlier, Saudi Foreign Minister Ibrahim al-Assaf told a gathering of his counterparts in Jeddah that the recent attacks on Saudi Arabia and the UAE must be addressed with “strength and firmness.”

“Tehran’s support for Houthi rebels in Yemen is proof of Iranian interference in other nations’ affairs and this is something that… Islamic countries should reject,” al-Assaf said during the ministerial meeting of regional foreign ministers in Jeddah.