Gulf states press U.S. to neutralize Iran for good as Hormuz crisis deepens [View all]

Last edited Tue Mar 17, 2026, 02:09 AM - Edit history (1)

DUBAI – Persian Gulf states did not ask the U.S. to go to war with Iran, but many are now urging it not to stop short by leaving the Islamic Republic still able to threaten the Gulf’s oil lifeline and the economies that depend on it, three Gulf sources said.

At the same time, these sources and five Western and Arab diplomats said Washington was pressing Gulf states to join the U.S.-Israeli war. According to three of them, U.S. President Donald Trump wants to show regional backing for the campaign to bolster its international legitimacy as well as support at home.

“There is a wide feeling across the Gulf that Iran has crossed every red line with every Gulf country,” said Abdulaziz Sager, chairman of the Saudi-based Gulf Research Center and familiar with government thinking.

“At first we defended them and opposed the war,” he said. “But once they began directing strikes at us, they became an enemy. There is no other way to classify them.”