Iran's foreign minister said on Twitter that a U.S. military drone that was shot down by Tehran on Thursday had taken off from the United Arab Emirates.

U.S. President Donald Trump approved military strikes on Friday against Iran in retaliation for the downing of an unmanned $130-million surveillance drone, but pulled back from launching the attacks, the New York Times said.

The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration issued an emergency order on Thursday prohibiting U.S. operators from flying in Iran-controlled airspace over the Strait of Hormuz and Gulf of Oman due to heightened tensions.

French President Emmanuel Macron's top diplomatic adviser traveled to Iran on Wednesday to hold talks with local officials as part of European efforts to reduce tensions in the Gulf region, a presidency official said.

Kuwait and Iraq called for wisdom and reason in dealing with the latest developments in the Gulf region in order to avoid tension and any clashes, Kuwait's news agency (KUNA) said on Wednesday.

The latest deployment of 1,000 additional troops to the Middle East, which was announced on Monday, will include a Patriot missile battalion, manned and unmanned surveillance aircraft and "other deterrence capabilities," the Pentagon said on Wednesday.

Iran has shot down a U.S. drone which the elite Revolutionary Guards said on Thursday was flying over southern Iran, raising fears that a major military confrontation could erupt between Tehran and Washington.

The commander of Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards Corps said on Tuesday that Iran's ballistic missiles were capable of hitting "carriers in the sea" with great precision.

Acting U.S. Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan announced on Monday the deployment of about 1,000 more troops to the Middle East for what he said were defensive purposes, citing concerns about a threat from Iran.

"Saudi Arabia does not want a war in the region but will not hesitate to deal with any threat to its people and sovereignty," Saudi Crown Prince Prince Mohammad bin Salman told Asharq Al-Awsat daily newspaper.

Saudi Arabia and the UAE on Saturday called for decisive action to protect energy supplies amid a tense US-Iran standoff as two tankers attacked in a vital Gulf shipping channel headed to port.

Iran will continue scaling back compliance with a nuclear deal unless other signatories to the pact show “positive signals”, the Iranian president said on Saturday as tensions with the United States escalated over tanker attacks in the Gulf region.

Qatar's foreign minister said Sunday that Doha rejected the outcome of the recent Mecca talks on mounting regional tensions with Iran as it had not been properly consulted.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Sunday his country was ready to talk with Tehran "with no preconditions", but with no indication lifting sanctions over Iran's nuclear programme is on the table.

Iran will not negotiate with the United States, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Wednesday, after President Hassan Rouhani signaled talks with Washington might be possible if sanctions were lifted.

Middle East Monitor website said that the tensions in the Middle East appear to be pushing up the price of oil, with a barrel of Brent crude now costing $71.75, an increase of 1.9 per cent. The cost of a barrel of US crude, meanwhile, is now $62.48, up 2.6 per cent.

Two Saudi oil tankers were damaged in a "sabotage attack" off the United Arab Emirates coast, the official Saudi Press Agency reported on Monday, quoting the Saudi energy minister.

Four commercial vessels were targeted by "sabotage operations" near the territorial waters of the United Arab Emirates without causing casualties, the foreign ministry said on Sunday, without giving details of the nature of the sabotage.

Saudi Arabia's stock market fell on Sunday, in line with most Gulf markets, after the US Pentagon approved the deployment of a warship and Patriot missiles to the Middle East.

Iran will reduce some "voluntary" commitments within its nuclear deal with world powers as a response to members' inability to resist U.S. pressure, but will not withdraw from it, state media on Wednesday quoted Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif as saying.