Barack Obama, GCCmeet at Camp David summit

Camp David 

President Barack Obama and leaders from six Gulf nations gathered at Camp David yesterday to work through tensions sparked by the U.S. bid for a nuclear deal with Iran, a pursuit that has put regional partners on edge.

US President Barack Obama reassured anxious Persian Gulf nations on Thursday that the United States is committed to helping protect their security, including the potential use of military force, in a time of “extraordinary changes and some great challenges.”

He offered assurances that an international nuclear agreement with Iran would not leave the nations of the Gulf Cooperation Council more vulnerable. “I was very explicit ... that the United States will stand by our GCC partners against external attack,” Obama pledged at the conclusion of a summit with leaders of the six-nation council. 

He expressed his hope that their cooperation would help achieve “the kind of peace and good neighborliness with Iran that I think so many of the countries here seek.”

Obama and the Arab leaders met in a rare summit at Camp David, the presidential retreat in Maryland’s Catoctin mountains.

The leaders issued a joint statement saying that in the event of aggression, the U.S. stood ready to work with the Arab nations “to determine urgently what action may be appropriate, using the means at our collective disposal, including the potential use of military force, for the defense of our GCC partners.”

Obama and the leaders from Saudi Arabia, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Oman and Bahrain opened their talks with a private dinner Wednesday night at the White House. 

On Sunday, Saudi Arabia announced that the king was skipping the summit, just two days after the White House said he was coming. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Nayef and Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman  represented Saudi Arabia instead.