Kerry meets with Gulf counterparts in Bahrain

The US secretary of state is the first cabinet-level US official to visit the country since the Arab Spring.

Bahrain's foreign affairs minister Sheikh Khaled bin Ahmed Al Khalifa (L) and US secretary of state John Kerry arrive for a press conference in the capital Manama on April 7, 2016. Mohammed Al Shaikh/Show more

Abu Dhabi // Key regional conflicts topped the agenda as US secretary of state John Kerry arrived in Bahrain on Thursday to meet his Gulf counterparts ahead of a summit between GCC leaders and Barack Obama later this month.

Mr Kerry, who is the first cabinet-level US official to visit Bahrain since the Arab Spring, held bilateral meetings with King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa and foreign minister Sheikh Khalid bin Ahmed Al Khalifa, before sitting down with GCC foreign ministers.

A US official said Mr Kerry was set to ask them to use their leverage with Syrian opposition rebels to adhere to a shaky truce that has come under increasing strain since it came into force on February 27.

Renewed fighting between Syrian regime forces – backed by Shiite militias and Iranian military officers – and rebels supported by Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkey have jeopardised the US and Russia-led peace talks scheduled to restart next week.

In addition to Syria, the Gulf foreign ministers and Mr Kerry also planned to discuss the Yemen conflict, the fight against ISIL extremists, “the situation in Iraq, Lebanon, and elsewhere in the region”, a US official told Agence France-Presse.

Mr Obama’s summit with GCC leaders will be held in Riyadh on April 21, a day after US defence secretary Ash Carter meets with his Gulf counterparts there.

Mr Kerry’s meetings on Thursday were also a chance for both sides to review the progress on enhanced regional security cooperation agreed to at a summit with GCC leaders convened by Mr Obama last May. This includes integrated GCC missile defence, cyber and maritime security and counter terrorism cooperation.

The US commitments are aimed at countering security threats posed by Iran, and were an attempt to reassure the Gulf countries over the nuclear deal signed with world powers and Tehran in July.

Gulf countries have generally been happy with the progress on the various lines of enhanced cooperation, a source close to Gulf officials said recently.

US naval ships have helped interdict three separate shipments of arms from Iran bound for Tehran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen in recent weeks, and the US military has been supplying Gulf warplanes in Yemen and Syria with munitions from its own stocks as supplies run low.

A number of major defence sales have also been approved, although fighter jet sales to Kuwait and Qatar have stalled.

But the increased weapons sales and enhanced tactical cooperation do not appear to have addressed Gulf Arab concerns over the Obama administration’s perceived detente with Tehran and diminished role in the Middle East.

Speaking in Manama before meeting the GCC foreign ministers, Mr Kerry called on Iran to “help us end the war in Yemen [and] help us end the war in Syria, not intensify, and help us to be able to change the dynamics of this region”.

He added that Iran should “prove to the world that it wants to be a constructive member of the international community and contribute to peace and stability”.

During his bilateral talks with Bahraini officials, including foreign minister Sheikh Khalid, Mr Kerry discussed human rights in the kingdom which has a disenfranchised Shiite majority.

“Here, as in all nations, we believe that respect for human rights and an inclusive political system are essential,” Mr Kerry said at a joint press conference with Sheikh Khalid, adding that they “had the chance to discuss the ongoing effort to address and to reduce sectarian divisions here in Bahrain and elsewhere”.

“I appreciate the seriousness with which he [Sheikh Khalid] considers this issue,” Mr Kerry said.

“We all welcome steps by sides to create conditions to provide for greater political involvement for the citizens of this great country.”