Saudi King, Others Skip White House Arab Summit

President Barack Obama is kicking off his Camp David Summit with only two of the six Arab heads of state he invited.

The summit, meant to assuage Arab concerns on the president's Iranian nuclear deal, will be attended by officials at the ministerial level.

Arab states are deeply skeptical of Obama's plan for a nuclear deal with Iran. Their governments are very worried about what could happen if Iran builds nuclear weapons.

"I don't think they have a deep respect, a deep trust for Obama and his promises," Emirates University Prof. Abdulkhaleq Abdullah told The Associated Press. "There is a fundamental difference between his vision of a post-nuclear-deal Iran and their vision."

"They think Iran is a destabilizing force and will remain so, probably even more if the sanctions are lifted," he added.

Saudi Arabia and other Arab states are now promising to match whatever nuclear enrichment capability Iran is allowed to keep under the president's deal.