Oil and predictability: Why Gulf, Arab states oppose regime change in Iran
Any US military action against Iran would raise the risk of retaliation against oil and gas infrastructure across the Gulf, either directly or through allied armed groups.
TEHRAN — The scale and scope of regime violence against protesters in Iran appeared to compel President Donald Trump to threaten military intervention in the country.
According to Gulf and Western officials cited by Reuters, the US president was close to opting for military action against Tehran over the crackdown, just seven months after the United States made the unprecedented decision to bomb three Iranian nuclear facilities.
But within days, Trump appeared to backtrack on some of his threats, perhaps searching for an exit ramp. A flurry of intense diplomacy involving Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Oman and Egypt possibly persuaded the Trump administration to pump the breaks, according to reports. To be sure, Trump told reporters Friday that no other players affected his decision-making. "Nobody convinced me. I convinced myself," he said.
Publicly, Trump said the killings were easing. Privately, regional allies reportedly warned that a strike on Iran would risk detonating a far wider crisis, one that could ultimately harm US interests rather than advance them.
