Saudi Plays with Fire, Says Nuclear Weapons Against Iran ‘An Option’

The comments were made by Saudi minister of state for foreign affairs Adel al-Jubeir.

"It's definitely an option," Jubeir told the Deutsche Presse-Agentur [DPA] in a recent interview. If Iran becomes a nuclear power, he said, more countries would follow suit.

"And Saudi Arabia has made it very clear, that it will do everything it can to protect its people and to protect its territories," the Saudi minister added.

Asked what changes he anticipates could come once President-elect Joe Biden takes charge in January, he said, "We will have to see."

Biden has promised to return to the nuclear deal but has said he will seek to put pressure on Iran's regional activities and missile programs, among other things.

Last week, Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud urged the world to take a "decisive stance" to address Iran's efforts to develop its nuclear and ballistic missile programs.

In response, Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson Saeed Khatibzadeh called on the kingdom to refrain from "baseless allegations and hate-mongering."