Obama Invites Leaders of Gulf Arab States to Washington

Barack Obama, the President of the United States, has invited the leaders of six Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries to Washington for discussions on the nuclear agreement with Iran and the wars in Yemen, Iraq, and Syria. According to international news agencies, the White House announced on Friday, April 28, that the meeting will begin on May 13 at the White House and continue the next day at Camp David, the presidential retreat. The White House described this meeting as an opportunity to discuss the expansion of relations and security cooperation between the U.S. and the Arab Gulf states. This important meeting was announced by Barack Obama in early April, as he seeks to assure the Arab countries of the region about their security following the recent nuclear agreement with the Iranian government. The Saudi Arabian government is concerned that after the lifting of international sanctions that have severely pressured Iran's economy, Iran, considered Riyadh's main rival in the region, will continue its activities to produce nuclear weapons. The ongoing war in Yemen has added new tensions to Iran-Saudi relations. An Arab coalition led by Saudi Arabia has begun airstrikes against Houthi rebels in Yemen in recent weeks and accuses the Iranian government of supporting this Shiite group. News agencies report that the U.S. government has attempted to justify the recent nuclear agreement with Iran as a necessary deal to reduce tensions in the critical Middle East region. In the past, the Saudi government has secretly threatened that if necessary, it would move towards producing nuclear weapons to counter Iran. The meetings on May 13 and 14 will provide an opportunity for the U.S. government to discuss the new conditions in the Middle East with the leaders of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, and Bahrain, who are members of the GCC. Experts say the main focus of these negotiations will be how to deal with Iran's nuclear program and the military operations of the Gulf countries in Yemen.