President Barack Obama sought to reassure Persian Gulf nations on today that the United States is committed to their security, insisting a nuclear deal with Iran would not leave them more vulnerable.
Obama and leaders from the six Gulf Cooperation Council countries met in a rare summit at Camp David, the presidential retreat. They were expected to issue a statement announcing new military commitments, including joint exercises and ballistic missile cooperation.
"We're really looking at what we can do to expedite the provision of support and capacity building to the GCC," said Ben Rhodes, Obama's deputy national security adviser. While the US has long provided military support to partners in the Gulf, the new commitments are expected to extend into cyber, maritime and border security.
Obama's separate negotiations to curb Iran's nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief has strained relations with many of America's traditional partners in the region. Gulf states fear that if Iran gets an influx of money when sanctions are lifted, what they see as Tehran's aggression in the region could grow.
As the leaders gathered, an Iranian naval patrol boat fired on a Singapore-flagged commercial ship in the Persian Gulf. A US official said it was an apparent attempt to disable the ship over a financial dispute involving damage to an Iranian oil platform.
The incident took place south of the island of Abu Musa just inside the Gulf, according to the US official, who was not authorized to discuss details by name. The White House said no Americans were involved in the incident.
Rhodes said that while the incident did not come up in today's discussions, it was "exactly the type of challenge" the Gulf nations are focused on.
