(MENAFN- The Peninsula) US President Barack Obama said in remarks broadcast yesterday that Washington would help Gulf states face any conventional military threat, such as Iraq's 1990 invasion of Kuwait, and improve security cooperation to deal with concerns about destablising Iranian actions in region.
Speaking in an interview with Saudi-owned Al Arabiya television following a summit with Gulf leaders he described as "very frank and honest", he also said that the war in Syria would "probably not" end before he leaves office.
Obama hailed the success of the summit held in his Camp David compound, saying that the aim of the meeting was to "deepen and broaden" the "excellent relationship" between Washington and its Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) allies. "The intentions here were to deepen and broaden what is already an excellent relationship between the GCC countries and the United States," Obama told Al Arabiya's Washington correspondent Nadia Bilbassy.
On Iran, which many Gulf countries see as a regional threat, Obama said that plans had been made for "joint capabilities to address destabilizing activities and conflicts in the region, some of these are related to concerns surrounding Iran." On the forthcoming Iranian nuclear deal, brokered between six world powers € including the United States € and the Islamic Republic, Obama sought to allay fears from Gulf allies that the agreement would weaken their own security.
"The United States has been very clear that a nuclear armed Iran will potentially be reckless and dangerous. So it is in everyone's interest to ensure Iran does not have nuclear weapons and provide a pathway for Iran to engage in positive behavior," Obama was quoted as saying by Al Arabiya.
Asked where the Syrian conflict was likely to be resolved before he leaves office in 2017, and whether or not it would prove to be his "Rwanda" - a reference to the 1994 genocide in the African nation which killed hundreds of thousands - Obama said: "Probably not."
Yet a lasting solution to the Syrian crisis must come from the Middle East itself, Obama said.
Obama defended his refusal to authorize strikes against the Assad regime. On being asked what he thought about a perceived failure and inaction of US leadership after the Assad regime was blamed in 2013 for using chemical weapons, he said: "We didn't because they got rid of the chemical weapons, and that in fact was very important."
The Gulf allies play a key role in the region's security, he added. "What I'm optimistic about it is that the GCC countries represent stability and also I think an awareness of the need for us to be able to move together," he added.
On the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Obama reiterated his commitment to a two state solution, adding that trust must be rebuilt between both sides in the peace process.
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