Obama meets Mideast leaders including Abu Dhabi Crown Prince

US President Barack Obama is scheduled to hold talks later on Tuesday with Abu Dhabi Crown Prince (General) Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Al-Nahyan on "common strategic interests in the Gulf region and broader Middle East," particularly in light of growing concerns about Iran's nuclear ambitions. The meeting between the US president and Sheikh Mohammed will be part of scheduled wide range talks and consultations due at the White House, later this month, with leaders of key Middle East countries, in an effort to retake initiative and revive the American policy in the region. Gen. Sheikh Mohammed is also the Deputy Supreme Commander of the United Arab Emirates Armed Forces. Obama will welcome to the White House the Amir of Qatar Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani on Tuesday, April 23. The leaders are expected to reflect on their "close defense partnership, expanding commercial ties, and many other areas of cooperation", according to the White House. President Obama will host King Abdullah II of Jordan at the White House on Friday, April 26, one month after King Abdullah received Obama last month in Amman. Further consultation between the two sides on Jordan's political and economic reforms and the humanitarian crisis in Syria are expected on the agenda. The last in the series of consultations expected in Washington in the coming weeks will be with Obama hosting Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on May 16 and consultations are expected to touch on Syria, trade, and economic cooperation and countering terrorism. Obama and his national security team see relationship with Ankara as a strategic partnership and gateway to deal with regional challenges in Syria, Iraq, and across the Middle East. Obama is expected to raise the issue of the recent meeting in Doha between the Amir of Qatar and Afghan President Hamid Karzai regarding the Afghan-led peace and reconciliation in the country. Qatar is also playing a key role in supporting the rebels in Syria and further discussions are expected on the way forward in Syria. The US is still reluctant to throw its weight behind direct support and provide lethal weapons to the Syrian opposition, while Turkey and Qatar want to see a more involved role for Washington in this conflict. US officials affirm that Washington has provided so far around USD 385 million of humanitarian assistance but has growing concerns regarding the influence of Al-Qaeda in Syria and the State Department listed Al-Nusra front last December as a terrorist organization. Jordan also has been conveying concerns about the conflict in Syria calling it "a threat to national security" with an increasing number of refugees crossing the border on a daily basis reaching now around 500,000 refugees, according to Jordanian authorities. With limited US options in Syria, moving on the Palestinian-Israeli front could be an alternative route to revitalize the US' role in the Middle East. Secretary of State John Kerry has been going back and forth to the region hoping to revive the negotiations between Palestinians and Israelis. Yet, many obstacles are still lingering including the Israeli government's refusal to stop settlement activities, the recent resignation of Palestinian Authority's Prime Minister Salam Fayyad, and the status quo in the Gaza Strip. As de facto ruler of Gaza Hamas, in control since June 2007, is peeling away from the Syrian regime's influence, some in the US administration are seeing a window of opportunity to change Hamas' attitude toward negotiations with Israel. With growing Qatari and Turkish influence on the leadership of Hamas, Obama could ask how both regional capitals can help persuade Hamas to opt for peace. Turkish media reported that Kerry approached his Turkish counterpart Ahmet Davutoglu on this issue during Kerry's stop in Ankara last week to test the waters ahead of Erdogan's visit to Washington. The US administration is downplaying importance of these consultations over the next several weeks. White House Press Secretary Jay Carney told reporters that Obama "will use these opportunities to discuss the complex developments in the broader Middle East, so not just Syria, but including Syria". Obama will highlight his recent visits to Jordan, Israel, and the Palestinian territories and discuss the broader implications of the Arab Spring on the region. But sources in the US administrations are lowering expectations on what could actually come out of these consultations.