Saudi Arabia, Iran Say They Don’t Want War, but Are Ready to Fight If Provoked
De-escalation follows Trump administration’s move to ease tensions amid hostile rhetoric that followed attacks on tankers, kingdom’s oil interests many blamed on Tehran
Middle East tensions appeared to ease over the weekend after the Trump administration moved to de-escalate two weeks of crisis, while Saudi Arabia and Iran toned down their threatening rhetoric in an attempt to avoid military conflict.
Saudi Arabia and arch rival Iran lashed out at each other last week following attacks on the kingdom’s oil assets, for which Riyadh and some U.S. officials blamed Tehran. Iran denied the allegations and accused its rivals of trying to frame it to provoke a confrontation after the U.S., citing…