Camp David’s success was the GCC not falling into Iran’s trap

The Arabic language press weighs in on the summit between president Obama and the GCC leaders, featuring Al Hayat and Asharq Al Awsat.

President Obama's summit with GCC leaders has been hailed as a success. Pablo Martinez Monsivais / AP

The Camp David summit that gathered leaders from the GCC countries and Barack Obama, the US president, was deemed a success by the latter. It marks the beginning of a new era in the relations between the US and the countries of the Gulf.

Writing in the pan-Arab daily Al Hayat, George Semaan said none of the parties involved expected the summit to either remove differences of opinions, mistrust or the Gulf countries’ concerns about Mr Obama’s policy positions on Iran, Iraq, Syria and Yemen.

“No one expected visions to unite around crises in the region. On the other hand, no one expected the meeting to fail in its aim of achieving a minimum level of understanding,” he said.

“The most important outcome was the quest to establish a new strategic partnership between the United States and the GCC, to enhance cooperation in matters of defence and cooperation, the supply of arms, counter- terrorism, maritime security and cyber security, and defence against ballistic missiles.”

However he noted there was no announcement about a joint structure with the capability to move quickly in the face of threats, although Mr Obama confirmed the US would consider using military force to defend GCC countries if it was threatened.

“The US does not want to engage in any new war in the region. Mr Obama reaffirmed that solutions to the crises in the Middle East can only come through politics, for he knows that an escalation between Saudi Arabia and Iran would end in a full-scale war that would eventually drag in the US,” he added.

“Iran, which opposes foreign military presence in the region, is surely not pleased with Washington’s protection of its partners. However it must realise it is primarily responsible for strengthening this link between the US and the GCC.

“If it weren’t for Tehran’s policies in recent decades, the Gulf countries would have no need for outside forces to counter [Iran’s] threats.”

He said Tehran had to realise that the US and the industrialised world have interests in the region that they need to defend. Throughout the wars the Gulf has witnessed over the past three decades, the American goal was to prevent any regional or international force from holding the reins of power when it comes to oil.

Writing in the pan-Arab daily Asharq Al Awsat, Tariq Al Humaid said GCC representatives went to Washington with a realistic negotiation strategy.

“They clearly decided to act rationally and wisely at Camp David, sabotaging Iran’s trick to drive them to collide with the Americans and particularly with Mr Obama. He has nearly two years left in the White House, even though each day that passes sees his power as president diminish, surpassed by internal difficulties,” he wrote.

“It is clear that GCC countries sought a new charter for the relationship between them and the US, though a written version never existed between the Americans and the Gulf countries.

“Clearly, GCC leaders went to Camp David convinced that it was not their role to change Obama’s opinion or scream in his face, but on the basis of taking whatever they could get now and not to fall into the Iranian trap. France, Israel and the US Congress will wage the rest of the battle.”

He described this strategy as perfectly reasonable given that Mr Obama is a “naturally hesitant president” serving the final years of his term.

Translated by Carla Mirza