US President Donald Trump said he hoped an end to the war against Iran was near, as the conflict, in its seventh month, escalated with Saudi aircraft pounding Yemen and Houthi fighters launching drones and missiles at Saudi cities.
The Iran-backed Houthis’ lightning advance in Yemen along the Red Sea and their attacks on Saudi Arabia, along with attacks that damaged Saudi Arabia’s East-West oil pipeline, have extended Tehran’s reach in the war and heightened global oil-supply risks.
As the war expands into a new theatre, the United States tightened its travel warning for Saudi Arabia, banning government employees from travelling within 20 miles (30 km) of the Yemen border.
Still, just hours after reports of the Houthis and Saudi Arabia fighting, Trump told reporters on Wednesday evening: “Well, hopefully we are towards the end of the war.”
“They want to make a deal. We’ll see how that works out,” he said, referring to Iran, reiterating past comments. Trump also said he had heard from Iran “directly”, without elaborating.
Trump has offered shifting goals and timelines for the war that began on February 28, when the US and Israel attacked Iran and Tehran struck Israel and US bases in Gulf states.
The extension of the war into Yemen threatens to worsen the global energy-supply shortage caused by the war, which has disrupted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. The strait carried about 20% of global oil and LNG before the conflict.
Traders say a prolonged closure of Saudi Arabia’s East-West pipeline could cut off as much as 4% of global oil supply, Saudi Arabia has not said when operations might resume.
The price of Brent crude hovered around $108 a barrel on Wednesday, close to its highest levels since May. The politically sensitive average retail price of diesel fuel in the US hit another all-time high, above $6.30 a gallon for the first time.
But oil prices fell in early Thursday trade as reports of Saudi Arabia offering extra crude cargoes through Oman reduced fears of supply disruptions in the Middle East.
Brent crude futures dropped $1.24, or 1.2%, to $104.59 a barrel by 00:49 GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate futures were down $1.14, or 1.1%, at $101.29.
The rise in oil and gas prices due to the US-Israeli war on Iran has become a major issue for Trump’s Republican Party in the lead-up to November midterm elections.
