Persian Gulf states cancelled a scheduled meeting with Iran as the Houthi rebels launched an attack on Saudi Arabia’s Khamis Mushait airbase, firing dozens of missiles and drones. This new phase of conflict has drawn attention to global oil security concerns; crude oil prices rose by over three percent due to disruptions in Saudi Arabia's main east-west pipeline, potentially affecting up to four percent of the world’s oil supply. The cancellation came after Oman, slated to host the meeting, announced its postponement at the request of Saudi Arabia, highlighting ongoing tensions between Iran and Gulf states amidst the escalating conflict.
Written by the local model on 2026-09-14,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
On September 14, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that Ukraine is ready to halt strikes on Russia if its partners ensure Moscow will refrain from hitting Ukrainian energy facilities and infrastructure. However, Zelenskyy expressed doubt about Russia's willingness to adhere to any agreement, emphasizing the need for a reliable long-term deal with real impact on people’s lives.
The day before, US President Donald Trump claimed that Ukraine and Russia had agreed not to hit each other's energy targets in an effort to mitigate rising global fuel prices. Zelenskyy later clarified that Ukraine was willing to reciprocate but needed assurances from "partners," likely referring to the U.S., that Russia would genuinely refrain from striking Ukrainian critical infrastructure.
Meanwhile, the Kremlin welcomed Trump’s call on Ukraine to halt strikes on Russian diesel facilities, with Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stating that any such call could be welcomed. However, he also noted that the upheaval in global energy markets was mainly due to conflicts in the Gulf region rather than the Russia-Ukraine war.
As tensions escalated and fuel prices soared past $6 per gallon, Trump's claims were met with skepticism from both Ukrainian and Russian sides, with no official confirmation of an agreement as of September 14.
Written for “Ukraine Russia Energy Strikes Trump” on 2026-09-14,
grounded in this article and the 31 other(s) covering the same event.
Persian Gulf states call off meeting with Iran as Houthis launch new attack on Saudi Arabia
Upsurge of fighting in Yemen poses dilemma for Washington
asserted
Upsurge → call → Washington
Arab states in the Persian Gulf called off a meeting with Iran planned for Monday, while Yemen's Houthis launched a new attack on Saudi Arabia after fighting that has extended the Middle East war to another theatre and further jeopardized global oil supplies.
The Iran-aligned Houthis in Yemen said they fired dozens of missiles and drones on Monday at a Saudi military airbase in Khamis Mushait, near the border, hitting aircraft hangars, radar systems, runways and ammunition depots.
asserted
they → call → hangars
They described the attack as retaliation for hundreds of Saudi airstrikes on Yemen in recent days.
asserted
They → describe → days
Saudi authorities announced brief emergency alerts there and in three other southern cities which have previously come under Houthi fire.
asserted
which → announce → fire
The Houthis launched a lightning advance last week in Yemen, culminating in the seizure of an island in the mouth of the Red Sea on Friday.
asserted
Houthis → launch → Friday
A separate attack that day, which Riyadh blamed on Iran-backed fighters in Iraq, knocked out Saudi Arabia's east-west pipeline, the main route for Middle East oil bypassing the blockaded Strait of Hormuz.
asserted
oil → blame → Hormuz
Crude oil prices rose more than three per cent on Monday, when the market reopened after the weekend, while the politically sensitive average retail price of diesel in the United States hit a new all-time high above $6.23 US a gallon.
asserted
price → rise → US
Traders say the closure of the Saudi pipeline could cut off as much as four per cent of global oil supply unless it is reopened within days.
uncertain
it → say → days
Images from space show sections of the pipeline damaged by blazes.
asserted
Images → show → blazes
Riyadh has not given a firm estimate for how long it will be shut.
asserted
it → give → estimate
Oman had been due to host a meeting on Monday with Iran and Gulf states to discuss negotiations aimed at reopening Hormuz, the world's most important oil shipping lane, largely closed since the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran at the end of February.
asserted
U.S. → host → February
But Oman's Foreign Minister Sayyid Badr Al Busaidi announced overnight that the meeting had been postponed "in the interests of consensus."
asserted
meeting → announce → consensus
Iran said the postponement was at the request of Saudi Arabia.
asserted
postponement → say → Arabia
Meanwhile, Iran issued a list of 77 ships it said had violated its protocols for operating in the Strait of Hormuz.
asserted
it → issue → Hormuz
Any ship on the list would face "restrictions on future passages, including fines, detention or confiscation."
asserted
ship → face → fines
Exactly how much oil is escaping through the strait has been difficult to confirm, as ships that manage to pass often switch off their transponders and transfer cargoes to other ships on the far side.
asserted
that → escape → side
U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright said on Monday the average number of ships crossing the strait covertly with U.S. support was increasing.
asserted
number → say → support
But independent monitors have suggested oil flows could have dropped off this month since fighting re-escalated after a quiet August.
uncertain
fighting → suggest → August
New war front poses dilemma for Trump
The upsurge of fighting in Yemen poses a dilemma for Washington, which is under pressure to aid its Saudi allies but anxious not to expand the costly war to a new theatre.
Saudi Arabia has led an Arab coalition battling the Houthis for more than a decade, after the mountain fighters captured Yemen's capital in 2014.
asserted
fighters → pose → 2014
The war there had largely been quiet under a ceasefire for the past few years, but fighting has now resumed, with the Houthis driving back forces from a Saudi-backed government based in the south.
asserted
Houthis → resume → south
The International Organization for Migration estimates 82,000 Yemenis have fled fighting since the start of the month as the Houthis swept into cities, including the historic Red Sea port of Mocha last week.
asserted
Houthis → estimate → Mocha
Aisha Muhammad, an elderly woman burning twigs to heat a kettle in government-held territory near Taiz, told Reuters she had left behind two daughters and three sons who had been unable to escape.
asserted
who → burn → daughters
"They can't even go out to the market to get food and drinking water.
asserted
They → go → food
They are being blocked and shot at, so they are trapped inside their homes," she said.
asserted
she → block → homes
"They cannot reach us, and we cannot return to them.
asserted
we → reach → them
On Friday the Houthis captured Perim Island, inside the Bab el-Mandeb, or the "Gate of Tears" strait, at the mouth of the Red Sea.
asserted
Houthis → capture → Sea
U.S. President Donald Trump is under pressure to end the war to relieve the global energy shortage and lower prices that are hurting the fortunes of his Republican Party ahead of midterm elections in November.
asserted
that → end → November
Saudi state media reported that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman had met in Jeddah on Monday with the commander of U.S. regional forces, Admiral Brad Cooper.
asserted
Salman → report → forces
Iran postpones talks with neighbouring countries; cargo ship near Strait of Hormuz reportedly struck
Houthis seize strategic island, Saudis close pipeline as fighting escalates
uncertain
fighting → postpone → pipeline
How they could send oil prices surging even further
Three sources have told Reuters that Washington has so far rebuffed pleas from Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to intervene in Yemen.
uncertain
Washington → send → Yemen
Trump confirmed over the weekend that he had spoken to the prince, and said the Houthis had also phoned, asking Washington to keep out of the dispute.
asserted
Houthis → confirm → dispute
The United States bombed the Houthis in 2025 for two months, but Trump called off that campaign after reaching a ceasefire with the group, which he said had promised not to attack ships in the Red Sea.
asserted
he → bomb → Sea
Trump, who attended a golf tournament at one of his resorts in Ireland over the weekend, said he expected the Iran war to end shortly after the elections in November, after which the price of oil would "drop like a rock."
asserted
price → attend → rock
