In a sign that US allies remain unconvinced,French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said he was unsure if anyone had any evidence to say whether drones"came from one place or another".
French President Emmanuel Macron phoned Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Tuesday to discuss the attacks,Saudi state news agency SPA reported. Macron said France was willing to help international investigators,it added.
Saudi state television said the Saudi Defence Ministry would hold a media conference on Wednesday that would show evidence of Iran's involvement in the attacks,including the use of Iranian weapons.
The state-owned oil company,Aramco,has informed some Asian refiners that it will supply full allocated volumes of crude oil in October,albeit with some changes.
Relations between the US and Iran have deteriorated since President Donald Trump pulled out of the Iran nuclear accord last year and reimposed sanctions on its oil exports.
For months,Iranian officials issued veiled threats,saying that if Tehran were blocked from exporting oil,other countries would not be able to do so either.
However,Iran has denied any role in a series of attacks in recent months,including bombings of tankers in the Gulf and strikes claimed by the Houthis.
Another senior Trump administration official said the Houthi claim to have used 10 drones in the attacks was undercut by the fact that Abqaiq was struck at least 17 times. The second location,he added,was hit at least twice by precision-guided munitions.
"The Houthi claim does not stand up to scrutiny,"the US official said,speaking to reporters on condition of anonymity. The Houthis had never used the type of unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV),or drone,that was employed in the attacks,the official added.
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Saudi Arabia has asked international experts to join its investigation,which indicates the attacks did not come from Yemen,the Saudi Foreign Ministry said.
Vice-President Mike Pence said the US was reviewing evidence that suggests Iran was behind the attacks and stands ready to defend its interests and allies in the Middle East.
"We're evaluating all the evidence. We're consulting with our allies. And the president will determine the best course of action in the days ahead,"Pence said.
Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said in a tweet on Tuesday the US was in denial for suspecting Iran over the attacks and ignoring that Yemenis were fighting back after years of war against the kingdom.
"US is in denial if it thinks that Yemeni victims of 4.5 yrs of the worst war crimes wouldn't do all to strike back. Perhaps it's embarrassed that $100s of blns of its arms didn't intercept Yemeni fire,"Zarif said on Twitter."But blaming Iran won't change that."
Meanwhile,Trump said on Tuesday he preferred not to meet Iranian President Hassan Rouhani during a United Nations event at the end of the month.
"I'm not looking to meet him. I don't think they're ready yet but they'll be ready,"Trump said."I never rule anything out but I'd prefer not meeting him."
Rouhani said on Monday he would not meet Trump at the UN General Assembly in New York.
Reuters