In a move to reach out to allies in the Gulf States, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry will be travelling to Qatar's capital city, Doha, in the near future. The trip is an attempt to reassure Gulf Arab officials that Washington will work with them to "push back" against Iranian influence in the region, he told the pan-Arab newspaper al-Sharq al-Awsat, according to Reuters.
"I will be traveling to Doha in the next couple of weeks to meet with the whole (Gulf Cooperation Council)," Kerry said, referring to a group of countries comprising Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman and Qatar, according to Business Insider. "I think we can persuade them both that by being more effective in our counter-push as well as through the restraints we have, they will be significantly strengthened going forward."
Kerry's decision comes amidst turmoil in the region. Though most U.S. allies in the Gulf publicly welcomed a deal between world powers and Tehran over its disputed nuclear program, few have come out in support of it. The members of the Gulf States are wary of Tehran's growing influence in the area and accuse Tehran of interfering in Arab conflicts.
Meanwhile, Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has been rallying against the U.S. and has told supporters that U.S. policies in the region were "180 degrees" opposed to Iran's and his country would continue to back its allies in Arab states. Kerry reacted to the comments, saying that he found them disturbing and troubling.
Kerry's diplomatic outreach mission follows a summit called by President Barack Obama at Camp David in May, which was snubbed by the leaders of Bahrain and Saudi Arabia. Kerry hoped that despite their misgivings, the United States would be able to convince its allies the deal was in their interests.
"The whole reason for Camp David was to bring people together around in an organizational effort to push back against Iran," Kerry said, according to 24News.ca. "We have negotiated a nuclear deal for the simple reason that we believe if you are going to push back against Iran, it's better to push back against an Iran without a nuclear weapon than with one."
