France, Germany, and UK Condemn Iran for Attack on Saudi Arabia in Joint Statement

France, Germany, and the United Kingdom have formally condemned Iran for the attack on two Saudi Arabian oil facilities earlier this month. In a joint statement released yesterday, the leaders of the three countries declared “[i]t is clear to us that Iran bears responsibility for this attack.” The statement from French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson conclusively went on to say “[t]here is no other plausible explanation.” The three European leaders join the United States in blaming Iran for the attacks, who, although the Yemeni Houthi Rebels claimed responsibility for the attacks, has received the United States’ total condemnation. The United States has been staunch in their stance of placing full blame for the attacks on Iran having already “sanctioned Iran’s Central Bank and its National Development Fund” citing their “support [of] the regime’s terrorism and regional aggression by financing the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps,… and Hizballah, the Iranian regime’s chief proxy force.” Additionally, the U.S. Secretary of Defense Mark Esper announced last Friday that President Trump “has approved the deployment of U.S. forces” to Saudi Arabia. The forces “will be defensive in nature and primarily focused on air and missile defense.” Now, in their joint statement, France, Germany, and the U.K. “urge Iran to… refrain from further provocation and escalation” and “to reverse its decisions to reduce compliance with the [Iran] deal and to adhere fully to its commitments under it.” Iran continues to deny all claims of any involvement with the attacks.