Kerry heads for Egypt and the Gulf to discuss Iran deal, ISIS
US Secretary of State John Kerry will travel to Egypt and the Gulf next week for talks on the recent nuclear deal between major powers and Iran and the fight against Islamic State militants, then he will head to Southeast Asia, where countries share US concerns about China's pursuit of territorial claims.
Kerry will visit Cairo on August 2 for a session of the US-Egypt Strategic Dialogue, a forum that "reaffirms the United States’ longstanding and enduring partnership with Egypt," the State Department said on July 27.
On August 3, he will travel to Doha to meet with counterparts from the Gulf Cooperation Council, which comprises Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman and Qatar, for talks US officials say will concentrate on the Iran nuclear deal, the war in Syria and the battle against Islamic State.
In Doha, Kerry will also meet his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov.
Kerry said on July 24 that in his talks with Lavrov he planned to discuss combating Islamic State militants and the role Iran could play after Turkey agreed to step up its effort and to allow US jets launch air strikes from a base near the Syrian border.
Russia has been trying to bring about rapprochement between the Syrian government and regional states including Saudi Arabia and Turkey, to forge an alliance to fight Islamic State.
On August 4, Kerry will visit Singapore for talks that will coincide with the city state's 50th independence anniversary.
He will deliver a speech there on US trade and investment in East Asia, before a stop in Malaysia from August 4-6 for meetings with the 10 Association of Southeast Asian Nations, many of which share US concerns about China's increasingly assertive pursuit of territorial claims in the region.
Kerry will visit Hanoi from August 6-8, where he will participate in an event to mark the 20th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations after the Vietnam War.
Malaysia, Vietnam, Singapore and their fellow ASEAN member Brunei are US negotiating partners in a 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade pact, which Washington hopes to conclude this year.