Kerry reassures GCC states over Iran nuclear deal

Following his talks with his opposite numbers from the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council in Doha on Monday, US Secretary of State John Kerry said he had agreed on behalf of Washington to "expedite certain arms sales that are needed and that have taken too long in the past."

Kerry also pledged that the US would step up efforts to share intelligence with the regional allies and step up joint military exercises.

"Today my counterparts and I discussed the steps that we will take and how we intend to build an even stronger, more enduring and more strategic partnership with particular focus on our cooperative counter-terrorism, counter-insurgency," he said.

On the surface at least, Kerry appears to have been successful in selling the nuclear deal with Iran to his Arab counterparts from six energy-exporting countries, who have expressed fears that the agreement could embolden Tehran to try to increase its influence in the region.

"This was the best option among other options to come up with a solution to the nuclear weapons of Iran through dialogue," the host of the talks, Qatari Foreign Minister Khalid bin Mohammad Al Attiyah said.

Shared skepticism

At the same time, though, Kerry acknowledged his Arab counterparts concerns.

"Our goal is to fully implement this agreement and to hope that Iran's behavior will be ameliorated. Obviously we all know about the support of Hezbollah for the Shia militia in Iraq, the support for the Houthi (of Yemen), other involvements in the region, support for terror historically," he said.

"Now everybody can hope that perhaps there will be a turning of the page, but we are preparing for the possibility that that may not happen," he added.

Under the agreement, agreed with six international powers in Vienna on July 14, Tehran accepted curbs to its nuclear program designed to deny it the capability to produce a nuclear weapon, in return for the lifting of international sanctions which for years have hampered Iran's economy.

Iran has consistently denied using its nuclear program to try to develop an atomic weapon, insisting that it is being used for peaceful purposes only.

pfd/jil (Reuters, dpa, AFP)