海角大神

Neither side in this week鈥檚 US-Gulf Arab summit got exactly what it wanted.

That said, there are no signs that the persistent disharmonies between the longtime allies will disrupt the model of support that the United States has developed with Saudi Arabia and the other Gulf states.

President Obama got only a tentative endorsement from his guests of his Iran diplomacy and its centerpiece, the emerging deal limiting Tehran鈥檚 nuclear ambitions. The Gulf states had to settle for a restated verbal American commitment to their security going forward rather than the written, NATO-style security pact that some of them had sought.

As for the Gulf Arabs鈥� hopes of eliciting a deeper US role in the conflict in Syria, Mr. Obama was clear: It isn鈥檛 going to happen.

In that sense, the summit at the Camp David presidential compound Thursday may have pointed toward a Middle East where the US stands by its traditional partners but does not block the rise of a more responsible, less destabilizing Iran.

鈥淚 believe that the Camp David commitments I have described today could mark the beginning of a new era of cooperation between our countries 鈥� a closer, stronger partnership that advances our mutual security for decades to come,鈥� Obama said at the close of a six-hour conversation with the six members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC): Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates.

鈥淏ut I want to be very clear,鈥� the president added: 鈥淭he purpose of any strategic cooperation is not to perpetuate any long-term confrontation with Iran, or to even marginalize Iran.鈥�

The White House message appeared to be not that the US is undergoing a policy 鈥渞ealignment鈥� favoring Iran, as some critics have charged, but that American and indeed Gulf Arab interests are best served by encouraging the emergence of a strong but cooperative Iran 鈥� a responsible member of the 鈥渃ommunity of nations,鈥� as Obama likes to say.

In the meantime, Obama said the US can best help the Gulf states counter Iran鈥檚 destabilizing actions in the region not by going head to head with Iran and its proxies in conflicts in Syria and Yemen, but by reinforcing security cooperation.

The US is committed to expanding intelligence and maritime-monitoring cooperation with its Gulf partners, the president said. Specifically, the US committed to helping the Gulf states implement a regional missile defense system.

For critics of the White House approach, Obama has simply fallen back on the traditional means of American support for Gulf states worried about an interventionist Iran: arms sales and provisions of evermore sophisticated weapons systems.

鈥淚t鈥檚 not diplomacy, it鈥檚 an arms fair,鈥� said William Hartung, director of the arms and security project at Washington鈥檚 Center for International Policy, about this week鈥檚 summit. The US in the first five years of Obama鈥檚 presidency transferred more than $64 billion in arms and defense services to GCC countries, said Mr. Hartung in a statement 鈥� three fourths of the total going to Saudi Arabia.

Obama had announced his intention to hold a summit with America鈥檚 Gulf Arab partners the same day last month that he delivered a statement on the framework agreement reached by world powers with Iran on its nuclear program.

The White House wanted to reassure Gulf leaders about the US commitment to them 鈥� that the US was not returning to the kind of Persia-focused policy it had in the days of the shah. In return, the US hoped to get a Gulf signoff on the nuclear deal.

What Obama got instead was a tentative expression of support for a final deal that would verifiably bar Iran鈥檚 path to a nuclear weapon.

Standing next to Obama at Camp David, Qatar鈥檚 emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, said the GCC 鈥渨elcomes this agreement, and we hope at the same time that this will be a key factor for stability in the region.鈥�

Sounding less enthusiastic, Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir said that while his country welcomes 鈥渁ny deal that stops Iran from having a nuclear capability,鈥� he noted that negotiators have until June 30 to reach a final deal. He cautioned that nothing yet guarantees that 鈥渁ll pathways to a bomb will be closed鈥� to Iran.

鈥淥ver the next six weeks, the discussions will continue in order to see if this can be brought about,鈥� Mr. Jubeir said, 鈥渟o it would be too early to prejudge what we accept and ... don鈥檛 accept.鈥�

The summit鈥檚 focus on Iran and enhanced security arrangements left some regional analysts frustrated that Obama did not use the opportunity to press the Gulf leaders on what the president has said is perhaps the biggest threat to Gulf stability: official resistance to political, social, and economic reforms.

International rights activists lament what they see as Obama鈥檚 failure to convey his publicly stated view that respect for human rights enhances national security 鈥� or to confront the Gulf Arabs with their often poor human rights records.

鈥淧resident Obama says strong civil societies are a matter of national security,鈥� said Brian Dooley, director of Human Rights First鈥檚 human rights defenders program, in a statement following the summit. 鈥淏ut when it comes to opportunities to take a decisive step in meetings like this one, human rights concerns get trumped by new military arrangements.鈥�