Gulf states didn’t seek war with Iran, now many want Trump to finish what it started; here's why

After Iranian strikes across the Gulf, regional powers face a stark choice: push Washington to degrade Tehran’s military or risk living under a permanent threat to oil flows

• Gulf states urge US to weaken Iran's military after attacks
• Iran's Gulf strikes alter regional sentiment and strategy
• Gulf leaders wary of wider war, avoid direct military involvement

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Gulf Arab states did not ask the United States to go to war with Iran. But after coming under direct attack, many are now urging Washington not to stop short, fearing that leaving Tehran’s military capacity intact would expose the region to repeated threats, according to a Reuters report citing Gulf and diplomatic sources.

The shift reflects a rapid recalibration in regional thinking after Iran targeted airports, ports, oil facilities and commercial hubs across the six Gulf states, while also disrupting shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a chokepoint that carries about 20 percent of global oil supply.

“There is a wide feeling across the Gulf that Iran has crossed every red line,” Abdulaziz Sager, chairman of the Saudi-based Gulf Research Center, told Reuters. “At first we defended them and opposed the war… But once they began directing strikes at us, they became an enemy.”

US pushes for backing as Gulf weighs risks

Even as Gulf leaders harden their view on Iran, they remain wary of being pulled into a wider war.

According to Reuters, Washington has been pressing Gulf countries to publicly back the US-Israeli campaign. President Donald Trump is seeking visible regional support to strengthen the war’s international legitimacy and domestic backing.

So far, that support has not materialised in a coordinated way.

The six Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) nations, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and Oman, have held only one virtual meeting since the conflict escalated. No broader Arab summit has been convened.

The United Arab Emirates, the only Gulf country to publicly respond, said it does not want to be drawn into escalation, while reserving the right to protect its sovereignty.

Iran’s strikes change the calculus

The immediate trigger for the shift in Gulf sentiment has been the scale and reach of Iran’s attacks.

Tehran has demonstrated its ability to hit both military and civilian targets across the region, while also interfering with maritime traffic through Hormu,  effectively showing it can influence global energy flows.

That capability has deepened concerns among Gulf leaders that any incomplete military campaign could leave Iran with the means to hold the region’s energy lifeline hostage during future crises.

A Gulf source told Reuters the prevailing mood among leaders is that the US should comprehensively degrade Iran’s military capacity. The alternative, the source said, would be living under constant threat.

Strategic dilemma: weaken Iran or avoid a wider war

Despite growing anger toward Tehran, Gulf states are not ready to join the war directly.

Sources told Reuters that unilateral military action by any Gulf country is off the table, as it would expose them to immediate retaliation. Any intervention, if it happens, would have to be collectiv, and even that remains uncertain.

Fawaz Gerges, a professor at the London School of Economics, described the region’s position as a strategic dilemma: balancing the immediate threat from Iran against the risk of being drawn into a US-led war they neither started nor control.

Joining the campaign, he said, would do little to shift the military balance but significantly increase exposure to Iranian reprisals.

Oil, stability and the cost of inaction

The stakes extend beyond immediate security concerns.

Iran’s actions have not only disrupted oil flows but also dented the Gulf’s broader economic model, which relies on projecting stability to attract investment, trade and tourism.

The memory of past attacks, including the 2019 strike on Saudi oil facilities that temporarily halved output, continues to shape current fears.

“Now that Iran has shown it can shut down Hormuz, the Gulf faces a fundamentally different threat,” Bernard Haykel of Princeton University told Reuters. “If it’s not addressed, this danger will be long-term.”