The White House on Tuesday warned Saudi Arabia not to sell U.S. assets and destabilise the international financial system, as the two allies are increasingly locked in a row over the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks.

White House spokesman Josh Earnest told journalists while commenting on the reports in Washington.

He said the warning came in response to U.S. media reports that Riyadh had threatened to sell as much as 750 billion dollars’ worth of American assets.

Report says Riyadh will fulfill the threat if the U.S. Congress passes a bill that can hold Saudi Arabia responsible for any role in the terrorist attacks that occurred 15 years ago.

“A country with a modern and large economy like Saudi Arabia would not benefit from a destabilised global financial market, neither would the U.S.

“Saudi Arabia and the U.S. have shared interest in protecting the stability of the international financial system,’’ Earnest noted.

Meanwhile, Earnest said that the administration of U.S. President Barack Obama opposed the bill and Obama would not sign it even if it is cleared by the legislature.

Obama has reportedly warned lawmakers of the potential economic and diplomatic fallout should the bill get passed, and has lobbied Congress to block it.

As regards Obama’s summit with leaders from the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council in Saudi Arabia on Thursday, Earnest said he does not know whether the issue would come up there.

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