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US efforts to galvanise Arab support to fight the threat from the Islamic State (Isis) are intensifying with a diplomatic drive led by John Kerry, the US secretary of state, in advance of President Barack Obama's announcement of a new strategy to fight the extremist group.
Kerry was on his way to Jordan on Tuesday amid signs the pro-western kingdom would likely play a leading if discreet role in the anti-jihadi coalition. Isis fighters in Rutba, in southern Syria, are uncomfortably close to the border of a nervous Hashemite kingdom, which is already playing host to hundreds of thousands of Syrian refugees from the war next door.
On Wednesday Kerry is to attend talks in the Saudi city of Jeddah along with foreign minsters from Egypt, Jordan and the six Gulf Arab states as well as Iraq.
Arab and western officials say they hope that the formation of a new more inclusive government in Baghdad under prime minister Haider al-Abadi will help rally Sunni opposition to Isis and bolster wider Arab efforts to help Iraq. Kerry called it "a major milestone".
On Sunday the Arab League endorsed action by Nato's "core coalition" and pledged to take individual and collective measures to fight Isis, but it did not explicitly support western military moves.
The US, in Kerry's words, has pledged to build "the broadest possible coalition of partners around the globe to confront, degrade and ultimately defeat Isis. Almost every single country has a role to play in eliminating the threat and the evil that it represents."
Diplomats say Arab partners will be asked to contribute what they can. US officials have played down suggestions of military involvement – though even symbolic participation by the Saudis and Emiratis, who both have state-of-the art air forces, would make a useful point about the responsibility of Sunni Arab states to fight Sunni Arab extremism.
The Saudis, Emiratis, Kuwaitis and Qataris – all sworn enemies of President Bashar al-Assad of Syria – are being asked to crack down hard on the movement of money and men to join Isis. The Saudis in particular have been advertising arrests of suspected terrorists in recent weeks. Kerry is likely to press them for funds for Sunni fighters – initially in Iraq – who can take on the jihadis. Backing for "authorised" Syrian rebels is also likely to be discussed if only because the crisis in the two neighbouring countries has now merged into one. Saudi Arabia and Jordan both have close links to Sunni tribes that span the borders of Syria and Iraq.
The question of the legality of military action is likely to be one immediate hurdle. AFP quoted a senior Egyptian foreign ministry official as saying that Cairo would take part in security measures only "under a UN mandate and in the framework of a security council resolution".
Jordan looks set to emerge as a key partner, with officials signalling a readiness to use its intelligence and special forces in support of the anti-Isis campaign. Former minister Mohamad Haliqa told an Amman radio station on Tuesday that Jordan's role would be "more than coordination and less than boots on ground".
The Associated Press reported from Washington meanwhile, that the CIA has approached a retired agency official with close ties to King Abdullah II about setting up a task force to help Jordan deal with the threat from Isis. The king met Obama and David Cameron at last week's Nato summit. Jordanian intelligence is known to have worked with the CIA in Afghanistan.
The US is also in close contact with Turkey about its role in the coalition. The defence secretary, Chuck Hagel, held talks in Ankara on Monday. Turkey signed up for Obama's "core coalition" at the Nato summit. But its leaders fear that too overt a role could endanger 49 Turkish citizens being held by Isis in Iraq and would prefer to keep a low profile in any action.
The US military has been flying unarmed surveillance drones over Iraq from Incirlik air base in Turkey but has flown combat missions against Isis from most of the Gulf states.
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