Additional Gulf states may follow Qatar in canceling contracts for oil and natural gas deliveries amid attacks on energy infrastructure
News Desk - The Cradle
“A number of Gulf countries have begun an internal review to determine whether force majeure clauses can be invoked in current contracts, while also reviewing current and future investment commitments in order to alleviate some of the anticipated economic strain from the current war,” a Gulf official told the paper. “Especially if the war and related expenses continue at the same pace.”
Among the largest economies in the Gulf are Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Kuwait, and Qatar. All have large sovereign wealth funds that invest heavily in US, UK, and European markets.
The official declined to state which three Gulf countries are considering such a review.
Iran has struck US bases in Qatar, the UAE, Bahrain, and Kuwait in response to the US-Israeli attack on Iran on 28 February that ignited the war.
Gulf officials have complained that Washington did not give their countries advance notice of the US-Israeli attack and ignored their warnings that the war would have devastating consequences for the entire region.
The Gulf states have also claimed that the US has failed to protect their countries, preferring to devote precious missile interceptors to protect Israel instead.
The investment review results from “the pressures these countries are facing on their budgets due to declining revenues from the energy sector, resulting from slower production or shipping disruptions, as well as from the tourism and aviation sectors, in addition to increased defense spending,” the FT stated.
An advisor to a Gulf government said that the possibility of investment reviews by wealthy Gulf nations has alarmed the White House.
After US President Donald Trump visited the Gulf states in May 2025, he claimed he reached investment deals with Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the UAE totaling more than $2 trillion, boasting that, “the jobs and money coming into our countries, there has never been anything like it.”
Any move that affects investments in the US or other western economies could increase pressure on Trump to seek a diplomatic strategy to end the war, the FT added.
The war has halted maritime traffic to a standstill in the Strait of Hormuz, the vital waterway through which a 20 to 30 percent of the world's oil and gas passes.
Qatar, the world's second-largest producer of liquefied natural gas (LNG), halted production this week after a drone attack on its main LNG terminal.
Doha was forced to declare force majeure, a legal clause that exempts a company from fulfilling its contractual obligations when events beyond its control occur.
One of Saudi Arabia's largest oil refineries, Aramco, was also targeted, forcing a temporary shutdown.
Iranian officials have publicly denied targeting Gulf energy facilities, including Aramco, saying the attack was an Israeli “false flag.”
Prominent US journalist Tucker Carlson stated that Saudi Arabia and Qatar have detained Israeli operatives planning bombings in both countries.
Azerbaijan said on Thursday that drones launched from Iran hit the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic, damaging the airport terminal and landing near a school in Shakarabad village.
Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi refuted this, stating the Islamic Republic “has not targeted the Republic of Azerbaijan,” adding, “We do not target our neighboring countries.”
If the war continues, it could cause a surge in oil and natural gas prices that would pose serious risks for the world economy.
A prolonged conflict in West Asia could be “very impactful on the global economy across a range of metrics,” such as inflation and economic growth, according to Dan Katz, deputy managing director at the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
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