NEW YORK // Saudi Arabia’s King Salman and US President Barack Obama meet on Friday to try to reset a strained relationship ahead of the implementation of the Iran nuclear deal, and to increase coordination on regional crises.
King Salman, 79, is making his first visit to the White House since his ascension in January, after declining to attend a summit at Camp David in May to address GCC concerns over the US-led nuclear talks.
Saudi Arabian foreign minister Adel Al Jubeir has voiced cautious support for the deal’s ability to cut off Tehran’s path to a nuclear weapon and the “snap back” provisions to reimpose economic sanctions if Iran violates the accord. But the kingdom, and other GCC states, are primarily concerned that the unfreezing of Iranian assets — which the US estimates at $56 billion (Dh205bn) — and the reintegration of Iran into the global economy will allow it to increase efforts to project power in Arab countries.
White House officials said while they expect the king to support the nuclear deal, Mr Obama will address Saudi Arabian concerns by discussing how the US will help increase Gulf capabilities to counter Iran’s “malign activities”. “I think that’s what will shape the context of the discussion on Iran with the king,” said Ben Rhodes, Mr Obama’s deputy national security adviser for strategic communications.
King Salman’s visit, just ahead of an expected congressional vote on the nuclear deal, is widely seen as a move by both countries to present Washington’s closest Arab ally — and arch rival of Iran — as endorsing the agreement. In exchange, Riyadh would look for more security commitments and cooperation.
But on Wednesday, Mr Obama gained enough public support from Democratic members of congress to ensure that he will be able to veto any Republican-led attempts to scuttle it through new legislation.
Regardless, the long-delayed White House meeting is also an attempt to show that the seven-decade US-Saudi strategic relationship has returned to a more solid footing after four years of increased tensions, analysts say.
“Fundamentally this visit is about the strength of the relationship even during rocky times,” said Lori Plotkin Boghardt, an expert on US-Gulf relations at the Washington Institute think tank. The visit “shows that the two countries are trying to work through their differences like strategic partners”.
After the Arab Spring, the two allies differed sharply on how to stabilise the region, but with the rise of ISIL and spread of other extremist groups, there has been a renewed focus on security cooperation. The need to have Gulf allies back the Iran deal, which may be Mr Obama’s key foreign policy legacy, has also driven US support for Saudi Arabia, particularly in Yemen.
But disagreements remain over support for rebels in Syria and some aspects of the Saudi Arabia-led campaign against Iran-allied Houthi rebels in Yemen.
“We obviously don’t agree on every detail of our respective policy approaches, but when we do disagree, we discuss these issues frankly and directly,” said Jeff Prescott, the White House’s senior director for the Middle East.
Riyadh would like the US to do more to directly confront Iran’s use of allied and proxy militant groups and backing of disaffected Arab Shia communities, and to allow the sale of big-ticket weapons such as armed drones and the most advanced fighter jets.
The White House, however, prefers to help GCC countries build up their own capabilities to counter Iran’s non-conventional threats, as well as those posed by ISIL, and has been engaged in discussions through joint working groups since the Camp David summit to increase maritime security, cyber security, special forces training, intelligence sharing and an integrated ballistic missile defence shield, White House officials said.
“Which is why we’re seeking to broaden this conversation from those large-scale systems, which are important and will continue to characterise our relationship to these more nimble 21st-century capabilities,” Mr Rhodes said.
The ultimate goal is for Gulf countries to be able to engage Iran diplomatically to resolve the cold war between Riyadh and Tehran from a position of strength.
Mr Obama will argue that Iran will use the sanctions money primarily to fix its crumbling economy, and that, at any rate, Iran’s regional “meddling” is carried out at a low financial expense, Mr Rhodes said.
Riyadh has yet to announce who will accompany the king, and observers say whether his son, defence minister and deputy crown prince Mohammad bin Salman, attends the talks will be a key indicator of how substantive they will be. The 30-year-old prince leads Riyadh’s newly assertive regional policies, particularly in Yemen.
While the US has recently nearly doubled to 45 the number of military personnel assisting in the logistics and targeting of the Saudi air campaign in Yemen, officials are increasingly uncomfortable with the civilian toll of the conflict and are pushing for a political resolution through UN mediation.
“We have to hold all of ourselves to the highest possible standard when it relates to preventing civilian deaths, and that will continue to be a part of our dialogue as it relates to Yemen,” Mr Rhodes said.
The allies also differ over the war in Syria, and the two leaders will work towards “a common view in terms of which opposition deserves our support and that we’re seeking to isolate more extremist elements”, Mr Rhodes said.
Riyadh, Doha and Ankara’s support for a coalition of rebel groups that includes hardliners and co-operates with the Nusra Front has been opposed by the White House.
Mr Obama and King Salman will also discuss the political process in Syria, especially the potential role for Russia in bringing about a transition as the Assad regime comes under increasing military pressure.
Beyond the direct talks, the Saudi king is expected to be accompanied by a large economic delegation of officials and businessmen, as well as prominent Saudi women, said Fahad Nazer, a former political analyst the Saudi embassy in Washington.
The delegation will attend a US-Saudi investor’s conference that has been arranged to coincide with the visit, and is aimed at boosting private sector interest in the kingdom at a time of economic challenges and also to show that bilateral ties are also economic, not solely military and political.
“The Saudis have a long history of organising these sorts of visits which can be very effective in changing people’s perceptions about developments in the kingdom,” Mr Nazer said.
The conference will allow Riyadh to show that it still has significant cash reserves — nearly $700bn — and “is in fact more open now for foreign business than ever before”, said Jean-François Seznec, an expert on Saudi’s economy at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies. “It is important for them to say ‘we can see things coming even though we have deficits, we can see things along.”
tkhan@thenational.ae