Saudi crown prince urges Trump not to escalate Iran war as US leader weighs new strikes: AP source

Washington: Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the kingdom's de facto leader, in a phone call with President Donald Trump raised concerns about the US potentially escalating the conflict with Iran, according to a person familiar with the leaders' discussion.

The discussion on Saturday, which was first reported on by Axios, comes as Trump weighs whether to carry out new strikes on Iran.

The Saudis, according to the person briefed on the substance of the call but not authorised to comment publicly, are concerned that if the US targets Iran's energy infrastructure or carries out massive strikes on other key infrastructure, Tehran could respond by carrying out attacks on the kingdom's and other Gulf countries' energy infrastructure.

The crown prince during Saturday's call sought clarity from Trump on what potential new action he's weighing to take against Iran, the person said.

The White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment about Saturday's call.

Saudi Arabia earlier this week joined the US in striking multiple logistics and weapons sites used by Iranian-backed militias in Iraq, but has been urging the US and Iran to get back to the negotiating table to find an endgame to the five-month old conflict

The crown prince also dispatched his brother, Saudi Defence Minister Khalid bin Salman, to Washington earlier this week for separate meetings with Trump and Vice President J D Vance to discuss Iran strategy.