Washington, Riyadh– US Secretary of Defense announced in a press conference in the Pentagon that he and his Saudi counterpart, Deputy Crown Prince and Defense Minister Mohammad bin Salman, agreed to convene a U.S.-Gulf Cooperation defense ministerial on April 20 in Riyadh ahead of President Barack Obama’s participation in the U.S.-Gulf Cooperation Council leaders’ summit there the next day.
The meeting also will strengthen US-GCC defense partnerships by allowing participants to review and discuss the way ahead for joint regional defense initiatives that all committed to during the 2015 US-GCC Camp David Summit last May, the secretary added.
On Thursday, Saudi Arabia’s Deputy Crown Prince and Minister of Defense Mohammed bin Salman received a phone call from US Secretary of Defense Ash Carter.
They affirmed the importance of the US-Saudi defense relationship and discussed the security environment in the Middle East in order find ways to work together to strengthen cooperation on counterterrorism efforts.
They also discussed expanding areas of coordination between USA, Saudi Arabia and the Gulf states regarding the regional, international and military issues, in addition to enhancing the chances of stability in the region; including joint efforts in the fight against terrorism, Iran’s role in the region, as well as coordinating US- Gulf efforts to counter extremism which is supported by some countries.
The Secretary welcomed Saudi Arabia’s contributions to the counter ISIS coalition campaign.
The US reiterated its willingness to work with GCC states in order to promote stability in the Middle East. The Secretary and the Deputy Crown Prince agreed on the need to stay in close communication in the coming days.
In a statement, Pentagon’s Press Secretary, Peter Cook, confirmed that the phone call focused on defense relationship between the two countries.
  Marine Corps Gen. Joe Dunford, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, explained during the same press conference that recommendations on ways to increase US support for Iraq’s ground fight against ISIS are going to be discussed with President Barack Obama soon.
“The secretary and I both believe that there will be an increase in US forces in Iraq in coming weeks, but that decision hasn’t been made,” Dunford told Pentagon reporters during a briefing. He did not say how big that increase might be.

Source: English Al- Awsat, MARCH 26