Obama meets Saudi king with Iran on agenda

(by Roberta Rampton, Reuters) – RIYADH, Saudi Arabia - U.S. President Barack Obama arrived in Riyadh on Wednesday to meet Saudi Arabia's King Salman ahead of a summit with other Gulf Arab leaders on Thursday and with regional tensions with Iran likely to be high on the agenda. Obama comes to the world's top oil exporter for a fourth and likely last time as president hoping to reassure it and other Gulf allies of Washington's commitment to their security, and to seek ways to reduce sectarian tensions in the region. However, his meetings come in the shadow of disagreements that have further cooled an already strained atmosphere between the old allies ahead of the talks. Unlike in previous visits, Obama's arrival in Riyadh was not aired on live television. The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) groups Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and Oman which are ruled mostly by Sunni Muslim monarchies, with the exception of Oman (where they are Ibadi Muslims).