• Pompey accuses Iran of attacks on Saudi refineries. Halved production. Use: we will use reserves
  • Trump calls Salman after attacks on refineries: "Damage to our economies"
  • Attacks with drones against two oil plants in Saudi Arabia

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by Tiziana Di Giovannandrea 15 September 2019For drone attacks on the two refineries in Saudi Arabia, which halved the daily oil production and claimed by the Shiite rebels Houthi of Yemen, Washington pointed the finger at Tehran believing that behind the assault on the oil sites let there be the hand of Iran.

In a televised speech the Iranian president, Hassan Rohani , with soothing tones said that "a truce is needed in Yemen" for the stability of the region. The head of state also stated that "the problems facing the region must be resolved through dialogue". Rohani then dismissed the US accusations against Iran because, according to the Iranian head of state, the problems stem from 'their presence in the area'.

The speech was made on the eve of a possible nuclear meeting between Donald Trump and the Iranian president Rohani himself but in the light of the oil attack the meeting between the two leaders is certainly not facilitated even if nothing is excluded from the White House . In fact, White House adviser Kellyanne Conway , in an interview with Fox News, warned that attacks on refineries in Saudi Arabia "are not helping" the prospects of a meeting between Trump and Rohani but did not rule it out. "I will let the President announce a meeting or not," he said. The face to face meeting should take place in the margins of the UN General Assembly scheduled for the third decade of September. But the adviser to the American president Donald Trump, has kept to specify that the United States is "ready to react in case of an Iranian attack against Saudi Arabia".

Iran denies having had any responsibility in the drone attack on oil sites in Saudi Arabia, as stated by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. His words are "absurd and incomprehensible, therefore lacking in any effect", said the spokesman of the Iranian Foreign Ministry, Abbas Moussavi, quoted by the Isna agency. "Given that the American policies of maximum pressure on Iran have failed, the Americans have now passed to the maximum lies," he added, specifying that "even in times of great hostility, the statements of politicians should maintain a minimum of credibility" while Iran's Foreign Minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif , on Twitter writes: "Blaming Iran will not end the disaster. It can be accepted by our proposals of April 15 to end the war and start talks."

Meanwhile, after the European Union, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres has strongly condemned the attack on Saudi refineries.

Analysts, 'hit the heart of the oil system, there will be consequences'
Following the two attacks on sites in Saudi Arabia that hit the world's largest oil processing plant, Riad suspended production of 5.7 million barrels per day, more than half of its total production and this has blown up 5% of global crude supplies. The Saudi stock market, the Tadawul, has lost three percent and investors are betting on rising oil prices as Asian markets open. According to some analysts, the price of oil will grow by 5-10 dollars a barrel at the opening of the markets on Monday and could splash up to 100 dollars if Riad does not restore the supply in the short term. The International Energy Agency for the moment only specifies that "it carefully follows the evolution of the situation". At the Wall Street Journal, Roger Diwan, an oil consultant for Ihs Markit, pointed out that it is still impossible to predict the exact consequences of the raid that hit one of the world's most important oil supply sites. According to the analyst, crude oil prices will jump after the attack. If the blockade of production remains extended, it will probably resort to the release of strategic oil reserves by the countries of the International Energy Agency. For the media it could take "weeks not days" for Saudi Arabia to return to its full capacity to supply crude oil after the attacks on Aramco oil plants. Reuters reports citing informed sources. Kingdom officials did not set a timetable to restore the full offer.