The White House has suggested President Donald Trump could ask Gulf states to help pay for the US-Israel conflict with Iran. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters that covering war costs is an idea Trump has considered, though she wouldn't elaborate on timing or specifics.

During the 1990-91 Gulf war, countries including Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Kuwait contributed substantially to offset costs when the US led an international coalition against Iraq's invasion of Kuwait. The current conflict has sent shockwaves through global energy markets as Iran blocked the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world's oil typically transits.

Trump has expressed frustration at NATO and European allies for not helping reopen the strait as petrol prices soar. The US has bombed more than 11,000 targets in Iran since the war began on February 28. The administration's consideration of asking Gulf states to share war costs comes as these nations have already sustained millions in lost revenues and structural damage from Tehran's retaliatory strikes.