Iran deal: King, Obama focus on Gulf security

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman has told US President Barack Obama that he hoped a final nuclear deal between world powers and Iran would strengthen regional and world security, official media said. In a phone call with Obama, King Salman “expressed his hope that a final binding deal would be reached to reinforce the stability and security of the region and the world,” the SPA news agency said. A framework agreement aimed at curbing Iran’s nuclear drive was clinched on Thursday after marathon talks in Switzerland. It marked a major breakthrough in a 12-year standoff between Iran and the West. Obama said Thursday he had invited Gulf leaders to a spring summit at Camp David to discuss security cooperation in the region. Saudi Arabia fears that if too much of Iran’s nuclear program is left intact it will still have the ability to obtain an atomic bomb. The Kingdom’s former intelligence chief, Prince Turki Al-Faisal, warned last month that “whatever comes out of these talks, we will want the same,” specifically uranium enrichment capability. While King Salman and Obama discussed the latest developments in Yemen, the US president renewed his country’s full commitment to support Saudi Arabia in defending itself. The US president said in a statement to reporters at the White House: “I have spoken to King Salman to reaffirm our commitment to the security of our partners in the Gulf region.” He added: “I have invited the six Gulf states’ leaders to a meeting at Camp David in the spring of this year to discuss how to further strengthen our security cooperation to resolve the multiple conflicts that have caused so much turmoil and instability in the Middle East.” King Salman also received a telephone call from British Prime Minister David Cameron on Friday. They discussed the latest developments in Yemen. The premier reiterated Britain’s commitment to support the Kingdom and to strengthen ties at all levels to promote regional security and stability. Cameron described the nuclear framework deal with Iran as an opportunity to achieve peace in the region and cut off every pathway that Iran could take to develop a nuclear weapon. Oman and Bahrain welcomed the deal reached in Lausanne. A statement from the foreign ministry in Muscat said that a final deal, to be reached by June 30, should open “a new era for more regional and international security and stability.” Bahrain said it hoped Tehran would “change its policies and not interfere in the domestic affairs” of its Arab neighbors, the BNA news agency reported. -arabnews