U.S. Secretary of State Rubio to Meet Gulf Leaders on Iran Agreement and Regional Security

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio will meet Gulf Arab leaders in the United Arab Emirates on Tuesday to discuss a draft agreement with Iran that omits limits on ballistic missiles and includes a proposed $300 billion reconstruction fund. Rubio will continue afterward to Kuwait and Bahrain, where he is scheduled to meet officials from the Gulf Cooperation Council.

The council groups the UAE, Kuwait, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Oman. -Iran memorandum of understanding last week. -Israeli war with Iran began four months earlier, and all six GCC nations provided some logistical support to Washington while also facing Iranian airstrikes.

U.S. military bases. A draft agreement that leaves Iran's missile program unconstrained and provides reconstruction funds has drawn private concern among some GCC officials, according to Al-Monitor reporting.

Vice President JD Vance said on June 20 that the United States was willing to "transform" its relationship with Tehran. " Bahrain, with a population of roughly 1.65 million, experienced massive recurring street protests during the Arab Spring. Analysts note that Bahrain's mainly Sunni leadership is concerned a well-funded Iran could encourage unrest among the country's mainly Shi'ite population.

Andrew Peek, a former deputy assistant secretary of state for Iraq and Iran who served on Trump's National Security Council, said Rubio could reassure allies by noting Trump's past hawkish policies. "I think you can just remind them that the president has conducted extremely hawkish policies toward Iran - and if this MoU falls through, he will have no compunction about going back to striking them," Peek said.