Trump shelves Gulf talks until next year
The White House has once again postponed a Gulf Cooperation Council summit aimed at bringing together the fragmented alliance to counter Iran.
The Donald Trump administration has delayed an October summit to band together Gulf countries against Iran until next year, current and former US officials tell Al-Monitor, a potential blow to efforts to reconcile the six-nation bloc.
Officials say President Trump’s packed travel schedule before November’s midterm elections has forced the administration to postpone the summit, marking the second time this year the United States has nixed a meeting to reunite the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC).
Leaders of the Gulf bloc haven't met since Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain began a blockade of Qatar in June 2017 over the tiny emirate’s ties to Iran and Islamist groups. The bloc also includes Kuwait and Oman.
A US-led effort to reconcile the Gulf countries failed after the UAE objected to visiting the White House before the emir of Qatar’s visit in April, which would have denied them the opportunity to have the last word with Trump. Despite the administration’s support for a gathering that would reportedly also include Egypt and Jordan, experts say getting the fragmented Gulf alliance on the same page will likely prove difficult.
