Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman accused Iran of standing behind the recent attacks on oil tankers in the Gulf of Oman, stressing that his country will confront any threat that faces it.

"We do not want a war in the region... But we won't hesitate to deal with any threat to our people, our sovereignty, our territorial integrity and our vital interests," the Saudi crown prince said in an interview published Sunday in Asharq al-Awsat newspaper.

"The Iranian regime did not respect the presence of the Japanese prime minister as a guest in Tehran and responded to his (diplomatic) efforts by attacking two tankers, one of which was Japanese."