Obama holds security talks with Gulf Arab leaders

President faces challenge at Camp David summit of allaying fears of US disengagement at a time of Middle East upheaval.

President Barack Obama has opened a summit in the US with Saudi Arabia and other Gulf Arab allies, seeking to convince them of US commitment to their security despite deep concern among Arab leaders about US efforts to broker a nuclear deal with Iran.

Hosting the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) for a rare summit on Thursday at the Camp David presidential retreat, Obama faced the challenge of allaying their fears of US disengagement at a time of Middle East upheaval while also pressing the Gulf states to work together in their own defence.
The GCC is comprised of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain and Oman.
In a media briefing, Ben Rhodes, US deputy national security adviser for strategic communication, said the leaders discussed the threat to the GCC from Iran, as well as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group, besides ongoing regional conflicts in the region, including Syria, Yemen and Libya.