MANAMA: On top of the violence in Iraq and Iran’s growing ambitions, the oil-rich Gulf monarchies are worried about the perceived political disarray of Washington on whom they rely for their security.

“Iran is a problem. Iraq is a problem. There are so many problems,” analyst Abdulkhaleq Abdullah said following the Dialogue on Gulf Security held in the Bahraini capital.

“The issue is Washington. At the moment, Washington is in a state of confusion,” said Abdullah, professor of political science at the Emirates University in Dubai.

After last week’s report by the US bipartisan Iraq Study Group that recommended a change in President George W. Bush’s strategy in Iraq and the Middle East, concerns over US policies dominated the Manama conference.

The six Gulf Arab monarchies, led by Saudi Arabia, are firstly worried by the violence in Iraq, whether between Sunnis and Shiites or carried out by Al Qaeda linked insurgents, and the possibility of the unrest spilling over into neighbouring countries.

“There is talk of a long and bloody civil war, of a division of the country along ethnic or sectarian lines,” said Bahraini Foreign Minister Sheikh Khaled bin Ahmad bin Mohammed al-Khalifa.

“This situation is a clear danger to the entire region.”

Amid Western-led diplomatic efforts to press Iran to renounce key nuclear technology, GCC members Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE announced their intention to seek nuclear technology for peaceful ends.

But the problems of Iraqi unrest and Iranian nuclear ambitions are made all the more pressing by Washington’s perceived indecision.

“The future of Iraq is the key, and it depends a lot on US foreign policy,” said F. Gregory Gause, associate professor of political science at the University of Vermont in the US.—AFP