Saudi Arabia and Iran: NATO warns against escalation across the region

The situation in the Persian Gulf remains highly strained and now NATO, specifically its Secretary-General, has expressed its opinion on the threat of escalation. He was "extremely worried" about the response to the attacks on two oil refineries in Saudi Arabia, said Jens Stoltenberg the news agency AFP.

"We urge all sides to refrain from such attacks, they can have a negative impact on the whole region, and we are very worried about the threat of escalation," Stoltenberg continued. The British BBC also quotes him as saying that Iran "destabilizes the entire region".

Yves Herman / REUTERS

Jens Stoltenberg: Banger view of the Middle East

On Saturday morning, several explosions had shaken assets of Saudi Aramco. The Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen were known for the attacks.

However, according to US President Donald Trump, there are many indications of Iran as the author of the attacks. "It looks like it," he said, adding that investigations continued, "We definitely need to find out who did it." Foreign Minister Mike Pompeo accused Iran of the attacks. Trump was not so clear.

Trump speaks of "much, much bigger attack"

The President said he would "certainly want to avoid a military conflict with Iran." Trump on Monday in the White House literally: "I do not want to go to war with anyone." However, the United States is prepared for a conflict. "It was a very big attack, and it could very easily be returned from our country with a much, much bigger attack."

In video: "It can ignite the entire region"

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REUTERS / Spiegel Online

After the weekend's attacks, Trump had promised the US allies in the region. In addition, he had threatened a retaliatory strike on Sunday. On Monday, he expressed his willingness to "help" Saudi Arabia after the attacks.

Can external observers relax the situation?

Saudi Arabia, meanwhile, announced its intention to invite the United Nations and international experts to join in the investigation into the attacks. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Riyadh declared - as had previously been a Saudi military spokesman - Iranian weapons were used during the bombing on Saturday. The target of the attacks was primarily the international energy supply. The Saudi oil company Aramco had to stop about half of its production.

The spokesman for the Saudi-led military coalition, which is deployed in Yemen's civil war, had previously said that Iranian drones had been used in the attacks. However, they were not started from Yemeni soil.

Experts are trying to find out whether drones or cruise missiles were actually used to attack the oil rigs and who could have fired them. Read an analysis here.