"The attack was launched from the north and unquestionably sponsored by Iran," defence ministry spokesman Turki al-Maliki told a press conference. "We are working to know the exact launch point." However, he would not be drawn on whether Saudi Arabia believed that Iran would ultimately be found to be the culprit, only saying they were confident they would find where the weapons were fired from.
Diplomats at the United Nations said experts were expected in the kingdom to lead an international inquiry. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who has directly blamed Iran for the strikes, was due to hold talks Wednesday with Saudi leadership as he arrived in Jeddah to weigh with the US allies a response to the strike that roiled global energy markets.
Yemen's Iran-backed Huthi rebels, who have claimed Saturday's strikes, vowed meanwhile they had the means to hit "dozens of targets" in the United Arab Emirates.
A US official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told AFP that the administration has concluded that the attack involved cruise missiles from Iran and that evidence would be presented at the UN General Assembly next week.
"As the president said, we don't want war with anybody, but the United States is prepared," Vice President Mike Pence said in a speech in Washington on Tuesday.
The apparent hardening of the US position came as Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei ruled out negotiations with Washington "at any level".
That appeared to nix remaining hopes for a dramatic meeting between President Donald Trump and his Iranian counterpart Hassan Rouhani at the United Nations next week. "I certainly hope we're not (going to have another war)," Riyadh's ambassador to London Prince Khalid bin Bandar told the BBC in an interview.
"We are trying not to react too quickly because the last thing we need is more conflict in the region," he said.
Iran has stuck with its account that the Huthis were responsible, and Rouhani said Wednesday the rebels had done so as a "warning" about a possible wider war in response to the Saudi-led intervention in Yemen.
State media said Tehran had written to Washington through the Swiss embassy on Monday, denying any role in attacks on Saudi oil installations and warning it would respond to any action.
The message "emphasised that if any actions are taken against Iran, that action will face an immediate response from Iran and its scope will not be limited to just a threat," the official IRNA news agency said. Trump called off a retaliatory missile attack on Iran in June after the Iranians shot down a spy drone. Trump's administration is considering responses to the latest attack, including a cyber attack or a physical strike on Iranian oil infrastructure or its Revolutionary Guards, NBC News reported, citing unnamed US officials.
Oil prices have see-sawed since the attacks, with record gains Monday followed by a tumble Tuesday as the Saudi assurances on supply soothed the markets. Iran has sent the United States a diplomatic note denying any role in attacks on Saudi oil installations and warning it would respond to any action, state media said Wednesday.
The formal memo sent on Monday through the Swiss embassy, which represents US interests in Tehran, "emphasised that Iran has not played any role in this attack", the official IRNA news agency said. It said Iran "denies and condemns claims" by US President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo that it was behind the attacks.
"It was also emphasised that if any actions are taken against Iran, that action will face an immediate response from Iran and its scope will not be limited to just a threat," IRNA said.