The seventh round of the Manama dialogue is taking place. The event is held every year to discuss issues relating to the Gulf region, but this round of talks are taking place in the shadow of the latest release of US diplomatic cables by WikiLeaks.

The Gulf is one of the world's most important strategic areas, but also one of its most volatile. And the leaked cables have revealed that relations between Gulf countries - particularly attitudes towards Iran - are not as they seem on the surface.

Should Gulf countries work out their own security issues or will the levels of mistrust revealed by WikiLeaks prove a stumbling block? Can regional players help to pave the way for successful nuclear talks with Iran?

Joining the programme are Steven Simon, a senior fellow of Middle Eastern studies at the Council on Foreign Relations think-tank, Fahad Shulemi, a retired Kuwaiti army colonel who is now a security analyst, and Sadegh Zibakalam, a professor of politics at Tehran University.

This episode of Inside Story aired from Saturday, December 4, 2010.