Omani Foreign Minister Badr al-Busaidi said via X (formerly Twitter) at around 11 p.m. local time on the 13th that "the regional meeting scheduled to be held in Salalah on the 14th to reach an agreement has been postponed." He did not say when the meeting would take place.
An agreement between Iran and the six members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) on passage through the Strait of Hormuz had been seen as a key variable determining whether Middle East crude could safely transit the strait amid intensifying clashes between the United States and Iran. But with the meeting itself delayed, concerns are growing that a deal may now be in doubt. Iran's Fars News, citing an Iranian official, reported the meeting was postponed at the request of some Gulf states, while Gulf News reported that Saudi Arabia had signaled it could not accept a draft agreement prepared by Iran and Oman.
Shortly after the postponement of the Iran-Gulf meeting, multiple explosions were heard in the Sirik area of southern Iran, near the Strait of Hormuz. As tensions around the strait mounted, vessel traffic through it fell sharply to seven ships a day. The Persian Gulf Strait Authority (PGSA), established by Iran to manage passage through the Strait of Hormuz, said on the 14th that the number of vessels sanctioned for violating transit rules had risen to 77 from 45. The sanctions list includes multiple vessels owned and operated by South Korea's Sinokor Merchant Marine.
Yemen's Houthi rebels, the pro-Iran force threatening the Red Sea, announced on the 14th that they had carried out a large-scale special operation against Saudi Arabia's King Khalid Air Base using dozens of ballistic missiles and drones. They also claimed to have seized Hanish Island and Little Hanish Island, key islands in the southern Red Sea, strengthening their control over the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. Shortly after the Houthi announcement, reports emerged that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the kingdom's de facto ruler, met U.S. Central Command chief Brad Cooper in Jeddah. Details were not disclosed, but given that bin Salman asked U.S. President Donald Trump on the 11th to strike the Houthis directly, he is thought to have likely requested military action against the group.
Meanwhile, analysts said that unless Saudi Arabia's East-West pipeline, which carries 5 million barrels of crude a day, resumes operation within days, 4% of global crude supply will be at risk. Reuters, citing industry sources, reported forecasts that repairs to the East-West pipeline could take as long as five to six weeks. According to maritime data provider Kpler, Saudi seaborne crude exports plunged amid the war with Iran to just 3.2 million barrels a day last month, the lowest in 13 years. As concerns grew over an energy supply shock from the Middle East, Brent crude, which resumed trading on the 14th, extended gains to as high as the $108 range intraday, while West Texas Intermediate (WTI) rose into the $103 range.
