Pakistani leaders vow support as two Saudi tankers attacked

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Monday condemned an attack on two Saudi oil tankers off the coast of the United Arab Emirates that the Kingdom has described as posing a threat to the security of global oil supplies amid tensions between the United States and Iran.
The UAE said on Sunday four commercial vessels were sabotaged near Fujairah emirate, one of the world’s largest bunkering hubs lying just outside the Strait of Hormuz, but did not describe the nature of the attack or say who was behind it.
Riyadh has identified two of them as Saudi and a Norwegian company has said it owned another. Details of the fourth ship were not immediately clear.
“The attack on the Saudi vessels is in fact an assault on the development and economic interests of the Kingdom,” Malik Muhammad Ehsan Ullah Tiwana, the chairman of the National Assembly Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, told Arab News on Monday. “We stand with Saudi Arabia against attempts to undermine its security and territorial integrity and we are ready to play our part to curb such incidents of international terrorism.”
Tiwana added that the international community needed to determine how maritime security could be ensured given that threats to Saudi Arabia’s interests could lead to a major conflict in the region.
The attack caused “significant damage” to Saudi vessels while on their way to cross into the Arabian Gulf, said Khalid Al Falih, the Minister of Energy, Industry and Mineral Resources of Saudi Arabia.
The minister said that one of the two vessels was on its way to be loaded with Saudi crude oil from the port of Ras Tanura, to be delivered to Saudi Aramco customers in the US.
“Fortunately, the attack did not lead to any casualties or oil spill; however, it caused significant damage to the structures of the two vessels,” Al Falih said.
The UAE’s state news agency WAM reported that four commercial ships were subjected to “sabotage operations” on Sunday near the Emirates territorial waters in the Gulf of Oman, east of Fujairah.
“The concerned authorities have taken all necessary measures, and are investigating the incident in cooperation with local and international bodies,” the UAE’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said, clarifying that no injuries or fatalities had taken place in the attack.
Pakistan’s major political parties have also strongly condemned the attack and urged the international community to help Saudi Arabia investigate the incident and hold the culprits responsible.
“Some forces have been trying to undermine the security of Saudi Arabia, but they will never succeed,” Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz Senator Mushahidullah Khan told Arab News. “We have always vowed to extend every possible support to Saudi Arabia to protect its sovereignty.”
Pakistan Peoples Party’s senior leader Naveed Chaudhry said the attack on the Saudi vessels could lead to regional conflict, therefore “all important players in the region need to tread cautiously.”