Four Arab states conducted intense diplomacy with the United States and Iran this week to prevent a threatened US attack on Iran over Tehran's use of force against protesters that they feared would have impacts across the region, a Gulf official said.
Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Oman and Egypt were involved in the diplomacy over 48 hours before US President Donald Trump signalled on Thursday that he had ultimately decided against an attack for now, saying the killings in Iran were easing.
The four countries had conveyed to Washington that any attack would have consequences for the wider region in terms of both security and economics that would ultimately impact the United States itself, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter.
They told Iran that any retaliatory attack it launched on US facilities in the Gulf would have consequences for Tehran's relations with other countries in the region, the official added.
Saudi Arabia's international media office, Qatar's Foreign Ministry, Oman's Information Ministry and Egypt's Foreign Ministry spokesperson did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The Foreign Ministry of the United Arab Emirates, which was not involved in the diplomacy described by the official, did not immediately respond to a request for comment on whether it had engaged in any diplomacy on the issue.
The Wall Street Journal reported this week that Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Oman had lobbied Washington against an attack.
The official said that the diplomatic efforts had focused on toning down the rhetoric and avoiding any military action that could spark wider regional instability and that this diplomacy could ultimately lead to talks on the dispute over Iran's nuclear programme.
While Oman and Qatar had mediated in disputes between Iran and the West, US allies Saudi Arabia and Egypt have had far more fraught relations with the revolutionary Shi'ite Muslim power.
However, after decades of Iranian-Saudi rivalry that fuelled conflict and political disputes across the region, the two countries agreed on a detente in 2023, with Riyadh keen to focus on its economic priorities.
Gulf states are fearful that US military facilities in their countries could be caught in any Iranian retaliation to US attacks, and that the energy facilities underpinning the regional economy could also end up being targeted.
Saudi Arabia and Qatar have enjoyed strong relationships with the Trump administration. Qatar and Egypt were both closely involved with the US in mediation over the Gaza war.
Turkey opposes military intervention
Turkey is opposed to any military intervention in Iran and its priority is to avoid destabilisation there, Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said on Thursday, as Tehran continues its crackdown on protests.
Fidan has held two calls with his Iranian counterpart Abbas Araqchi in recent days, stressing the need for talks to resolve regional tensions, while a Turkish diplomatic source said Turkey was also in touch with US officials, as direct communications between Tehran and Washington were suspended.
Speaking at a press conference in Istanbul, Fidan said Turkey would continue its diplomatic initiatives to help resolve the issue and added that Ankara hoped Iran and the United States could find a solution to the conflict.
"We are against a military intervention against Iran. Iran needs to solve its authentic internal problems on its own," he said, and added that Turkey's priority was to avoid destabilisation in Iran.
"This is why our priority is to totally avoid any situation that would cause force to be used," he said, adding Ankara "did not condone" the possibility of renewed violence between Tehran and Israel or the United States.
"We definitely want problems to be solved through dialogue. I think widespread destabilisation in Iran is too much for the region to handle." Fidan also said there was no US presidential decision yet that would require Turkey to "realistically" consider a US move to impose a 25 percent tariff on countries doing business with Iran.