SEPTEMBER 16, 2019
WASHINGTON, D.C. – A day after threatening an armed response over an attack on Saudi Arabia oil facilities, President Donald Trump struck a more neutral tone on Iran early Monday, saying the United States does not need Middle East oil production.
“Because we have done so well with Energy over the last few years (thank you, Mr. President!), we are a net Energy Exporter, & now the Number One Energy Producer in the World,” Trump said. “We don’t need Middle Eastern Oil & Gas, & in fact have very few tankers there, but will help our Allies!”
Iran denied involvement in the attack and said it would defend itself against any kind of military action.
In a later tweet, Trump referred to an incident over the summer in which Iran shot down a U.S. drone it said had invaded its airspace. “They stuck strongly to that story knowing that it was a very big lie,” Trump said. “Now they say that they had nothing to do with the attack on Saudi Arabia. We’ll see?”
In June, Trump ordered a military strike on Iran but changed his mind at the last minute and said the loss of Iranian lives would not have been proportionate to the destruction of an American drone.
Iran insisted the drone invaded its airspace and accused the United States of trying to provoke hostilities.
Trump held a meeting of national security aides on Monday, but officials had little to say afterward. Defense Secretary Mark Esper, who said his staff briefed Trump, tweeted that the U.S. “is working with our partners to address this unprecedented attack and defend the international rules-based order that is being undermined by Iran.”
After meeting with aides Sunday, Trump indicated that “help” to Saudi Arabia could include military action, claiming the United States is “locked and loaded.”
Though he did not name Iran specifically, Trump tweeted late Sunday that “there is reason to believe that we know the culprit, are locked and loaded depending on verification, but are waiting to hear from the Kingdom as to who they believe was the cause of this attack, and under what terms we would proceed!”
Because we have done so well with Energy over the last few years (thank you, Mr. President!), we are a net Energy Exporter, & now the Number One Energy Producer in the World. We don’t need Middle Eastern Oil & Gas, & in fact have very few tankers there, but will help our Allies!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 16, 2019
Others in the Trump administration pointed the finger directly at Iran.
Over the weekend, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said: “We call on all nations to publicly and unequivocally condemn Iran’s attacks. The United States will work with our partners and allies to ensure that energy markets remain well supplied and Iran is held accountable for its aggression.”
Iran said it is prepared to defend itself with “full-fledged war.”
Rebels in Yemen who are at war with Saudi Arabia claimed responsibility for the attack, but U.S. officials questioned whether they are capable of pulling off such an operation without major help from Iran.
As Trump and his administration formulate a response, Pompeo was spotted at the White House on Sunday, as was Defense Secretary Mark Esper.
Expecting global oil prices to spike, Trump said Sunday he may tap the strategic oil reserve to stabilize the market.
Administration critics blamed Trump for the Middle East predicament. They cited his decision to pull the United States from the Iran nuclear agreement, in which Tehran agreed to give up the means to make nuclear weapons in exchange for relief from economic sanctions on the country.
The United States renewed sanctions. and Iran responded by reviving some nuclear programs.
Trump critics said his offer to help Saudi Arabia is too open-ended.
“Pulling out of the Iran Deal, giving the Saudis a blank check for their war in Yemen, and piling on sanctions and threats has not worked,” tweeted Ben Rhodes, a national security aide to President Barack Obama. “We are at the predictable brink of an even wider war which is precisely where Trump’s catastrophic policy has put us.”
Trump has also made diplomatic noises toward Iran, suggesting that he might be open to a new Iran nuclear agreement.
Trump entertained the idea of meeting with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani at the United Nations this month, though the Iranian government shot down that idea Monday.
“Neither is such an event on our agenda, nor will it happen,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi said on state television. “Such a meeting will not take place.”
Courtesy/Source: USA Today
