Iranians
attend an anti-Israel gathering in Tehran, Iran, October 8, 2024. Majid
Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS Purchase Licensing Rights
Exclusive: Gulf states must not allow use of airspace against Iran, Iranian official says
Oct
9 (Reuters) - Tehran has told Gulf Arab states it would be
"unacceptable" if they allowed use of their airspace or military bases
against Iran and warned that any such move would draw a response, a
senior Iranian official said.
The
official also said any action by Gulf states to balance oil markets
should Iranian energy facilities be hit by Israel was not part of the
discussions so far.
The
comments come amid growing concern over possible Israeli retaliation
for last week's Iranian missile attack, as Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas
Araqchi visits Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states including Qatar for
talks on Wednesday.
They
followed discussions between Iran and Gulf Arab capitals last week on
the sidelines of an Asia conference in Qatar, when Gulf states sought to
reassure Iran of their neutrality in any conflict between Tehran and Israel.
"Iran
made it clear that any action by a Persian Gulf country against Tehran,
whether through the use of airspace or military bases, will be regarded
by Tehran as an action taken by the entire group, and Tehran will
respond accordingly," the senior Iranian official told Reuters.
"The message emphasised the need for regional unity against Israel and the importance of securing stability," he said.
"It
also made clear that any assistance to Israel, such as allowing the use
of a regional country’s airspace for actions against Iran, is
unacceptable."
U.S.
President Joe Biden is expected to hold a telephone call on Wednesday
with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that will include
discussion of any plans to strike Iran, according to a person familiar with the matter.
Washington
hopes to weigh in on whether the response is appropriate, a separate
person briefed on the discussions said. The White House did not respond
to a request for comment.
Biden
said last Friday he would think about alternatives to striking Iranian
oil fields if he were in Israel's shoes. Last week he also said he would
not support Israel striking Iranian nuclear sites.
OPEC ACTION NOT PART OF DISCUSSIONS
The
Iranian official said Tehran did not discuss the issue of Gulf Arab oil
producers raising output if Iranian production were disrupted during
any escalation.
U.S.
news website Axios, citing Israeli officials, reported last week that
Israel could target oil production facilities within Iran as
retaliation.
The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, OPEC,
which is de-facto led by Saudi Arabia, has enough spare oil capacity to
make up any loss of Iranian supply if an Israeli retaliation knocks out
some of the country's facilities.
Much
of OPEC's spare capacity is in the Middle East Gulf region. Iran has
not threatened to attack Gulf oil facilities but has previously warned
that if "Israel supporters" intervene directly their interests in the
region would be targeted.
Top
oil exporter Saudi Arabia has had a political rapprochement with Tehran
in recent years, which has helped ease regional tensions, but relations
remain difficult.
Saudi
Arabia has been wary of an Iranian strike on its oil facilities since a
2019 attack on its key refinery at Abqaiq briefly shut down more than
5% of global oil supply. Iran denied involvement.
A
Western diplomat in the Gulf said that during Thursday's Gulf-Iran
meeting in Doha, Iran made clear that Tehran had called for regional
unity in the face of an Israeli attack and that it considered neutrality
of Gulf states a bare minimum.
The
diplomat said Iran had made clear that Tehran would keep a close eye on
how each Gulf country responded in the case of an Israeli attack, and
also how U.S. bases housed in their countries were used.
Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates all host U.S. military facilities or troops.
Reporting by Parisa Hafezi, Andrew Mills, Maha El Dahan and Pesha Magid; Writing by Edmund Blair; Editing Daniel Wallis, Clarence Fernandez, Peter Graff