Confrontation or Conciliation: How the Nuclear Agreement is Reshaping GCC-Iran Relations
On August 3, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry joined a meeting of GCC foreign ministers in Doha after which the Arab Gulf states unanimously and publicly endorsed the international nuclear agreement with Iran.
On August 3, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry joined a meeting of Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) foreign ministers in Doha, Qatar, after which the Arab Gulf states unanimously and publicly endorsed the international nuclear agreement with Iran. The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), which promises Iran phased sanctions relief in exchange for limitations on its nuclear activities, was agreed to in Vienna on July 15 by Iran and the P5+1 international consortium, comprising the United States, Russia, China, the United Kingdom, France, and Germany. The Gulf countries had not been a party to the talks, and several of them had expressed official and unofficial concerns about the negotiations while they were ongoing. However, the joint statement released by the GCC foreign ministers and Kerry unified the Gulf position in favor of the agreement. In the statement, the United States and its GCC partners also “reiterated their opposition to Iran’s support for terrorism and its destabilizing activities in the region and pledged to work together to counter its interference… “
Saudi Arabia’s strategic defense agreement with Pakistan is part of a wider formation of alignments within the broader Muslim world meant to counter Israel’s expanding power and ambitions in the region, as the threat perception has shifted from Iran to Israel.
An Iraqi-born native of Najaf but an unmistakably Iranian nationalist, Ali Larijani is expected to leverage his record of bureaucratic competence and global fluency to coordinate Iran’s security bureaucracy.
An apology from Israel’s prime minister – delivered under the watchful eye of President Trump in the Oval Office – and a written promise of a U.S. response if Qatar is attacked go a long way toward restoring Qatar's deterrence and bolstering its security and stability following the Israeli attack.
The GCC states now consider an attack on one to be an attack on all, and Saudi Arabia may be covered by a Pakistani rather than U.S. military umbrella.
President Trump's attack on Iran's nuclear facilities may or may not have irreparably damaged them, but the Al Udeid strike suggests Tehran is seeking to avoid a prolonged conflict with Washington.
