Trump Sends Pompeo Scurrying To Saudi Arabia

USA Today reports:

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is heading to the Middle East Tuesday as the Trump administration again sent mixed messages about how the U.S. would respond to the crippling attacks on Saudi Arabia’s oil infrastructure.

Pompeo has blamed Iran for Saturday’s strikes on the Abqaiq oil processing plant and a key Saudi oil field, where an estimated 5.7 million barrels of oil are produced each day. The attacks, which disrupted more than 5% of the world’s daily supply, have renewed fears of a military confrontation between the U.S. and Iran.

Pompeo is scheduled to arrive in Jeddah on Wednesday, where he will meet with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the kingdom’s de facto ruler, to discuss the oil facility attacks and to “coordinate efforts to counter Iranian aggression in the region,” the State Department said Tuesday in announcing the trip.