Obama's Gulf Abandonment Issues

President Obama might be in for a frosty reception when he heads to Riyadh on April 21 for a Gulf Cooperation Council summit meeting, after his widely quoted characterization of "a number of Gulf states" as "free-riders."

This isn't the first time Obama has offered up frank criticism in advance of meeting with the Gulf monarchs. In an interview before the May 2015 summit, he urged Gulf rulers to be "more responsive to their people" and to distinguish "genuine activity that threatens national security from dissatisfaction." Obama assured the rulers of the US commitment to their national security, but added a crucial caveat. "How we engage in the counterterrorism cooperation ... without automatically legitimizing or validating whatever repressive tactics they may employ .... I think that's a tough conversation to have, but it's one that we have to have."

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