Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman, has been advising US President Donald Trump to “keep hitting the Iranians hard,” White House officials told the New York Times in a report published on Sunday.
This follows the same advice of the late Saudi King Abdullah, who had reportedly told Washington repeatedly to “cut off the head of the snake.”
Meanwhile, bin Salman and UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed held talks on Monday amid mounting questions over whether Gulf states will continue to avoid a direct public confrontation with Tehran, Al-Arabiya reported.
The leaders said that “the continuation of Iran's unjust attacks on the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries represents a dangerous escalation that threatens the region's security and stability,” the report noted.
The leaders also said that countries in the Gulf Cooperation Council would continue efforts to defend their territories and provide all available resources to support the region’s security and maintain stability.
Gulf states hold off on public strike against Iran
Additionally, after two weeks of war, and despite more than 2,000 missiles and drones launched by Iran toward Gulf states, a public retaliatory strike against Iran still does not appear to be on the horizon.
According to sources from Gulf states who spoke with The Jerusalem Post, one of the reasons they have not launched an attack with a claim of responsibility is their concern about “the day after.”
Another reason Gulf states are reluctant to attack Iran is the fear of a significant escalation in Iranian strikes, including an expansion of the list of targets that might be hit with missiles and drones.
Amichai Stein contributed to this report.