The U.S. and its longtime partners attending the U.S.-Gulf Cooperation Council summit face a new era of challenges as they work toward a lasting defeat of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant and to counter Iran’s regional destabilization, Defense Secretary Ash Carter said in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, yesterday.
The defense secretary is on the last leg of a two-week trip that took him to the Asia-Pacific region and several countries in the Middle East and Southwest Asia.
During his opening comments at the meeting, the secretary emphasized the robust relationship forged between the U.S. and its GCC partners over the past 35 years, noting that the close ties have enhanced regional security.
“We’ve stood together since the days of the Cold War from the Iranian Revolution, to Operation Desert Storm, to the aftermath of 9/11, to our coalition’s campaign against ISIL in Iraq and Syria,” he said.
The partner nations will together build upon their decades of progress in the new era to defeat ISIL, counter Iran’s destabilizing activities and ensure the partner nations’ combined capabilities against both threats match their combined commitments, Carter said.
“Today I reaffirmed the United States’ enduring commitments to the security of our Gulf partners, including the commitments President [Barack] Obama made at last May’s U.S.-GCC summit at Camp David,” the secretary said.
Focused Talks Precede President’s Arrival
In advance of Obama’s attendance today at the U.S.-GCC Leaders’ summit, Carter said, the GCC defense ministers from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Qatar, Oman, and Kuwait had a productive series of meetings.
Those discussions included accelerating the mission to defeat ISIL, Carter said, noting he announced earlier this week the U.S. military will take several steps to support Iraqi security forces as the Iraq retakes the key city of Mosul.
The secretary said he today encouraged GCC partners to do more to accelerate ISIL’s defeat -- not only militarily, but also politically and economically “because Sunni support for multi-sectarian governance and reconstruction, particularly in Sunni areas of Iraq, will both be critical to ensuring that ISIL stays defeated.”
DoD View on Iran Unchanged
U.S.-GCC partners agree the nuclear accord prevents Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon, although its destabilizing behavior in the region presents many concerns, the secretary said.
That is one reason Carter said he emphasized that the accord imposes no limits on the United States and DoD’s view has not changed.
“In our posture, our preparedness, our planning, and our partnership, the U.S. military remains committed and capable of responding to Iranian malign and destabilizing activities, and deterring aggression against our regional friends and allies, including all GCC nations,” the secretary said.
The defense ministers also reviewed six key areas of capabilities previously agreed upon to counter symmetric and asymmetric threats -- special operations, maritime security, cybersecurity, ballistic missile defense, exercises and arms transfers, Carter said.
Counter-Threat Capabilities Advance
“Over the last year, we’ve made important progress across these areas,” the secretary said, naming some multilateral efforts:
-- U.S. and GCC special operations forces work more closely together, including war zones, and the partner-nations have advanced regional maritime security with combined naval task forces patrolling “vitally important” regional waterways.
-- The nations are developing a blueprint for regional ballistic missile defense architecture.
-- Partners collaborated in nearly 40 exercises to practice integrated air and missile defense, combined arms, tactical air operations, special operations, and maritime operations. Carter said this month’s International Mine Countermeasures exercise is one such example.
-- Important strides have provided GCC nations with critical defense equipment worth more than $33 billion since May, including more than 66,000 precision-guided munitions to support urgent GCC operational requirements -- such as the counter-ISIL campaign.
“I’m confident that based on our discussions today,” the secretary said of the next era’s threats and challenges, “the United States and GCC partners will be able to take important steps forward.”
(Follow Terri Moon Cronk on Twitter: @MoonCronkDoD)