Trump receives Mohammed bin Salman from Saudi Arabia: five important conclusions | Political news

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has been warmly welcomed to the White House by the US president Donald Trump in a visit that highlighted the deepening ties between Riyadh and Washington.

The White House rolled out the literal red carpet for Prince Mohammed, better known as MBS, on Tuesday. Trump greeted him with a ceremony featuring marching bands, flag-bearing riders and a military flyover.

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The lavish display of hospitality signaled Trump’s embrace of a new Middle East driven by financial investments and U.S. partnerships with allies in the region, especially Saudi Arabia.

After Prince Mohammed’s arrival through the South Portico, he and Trump answered questions from reporters in the Oval Office. The two leaders discussed business opportunities, peace, artificial intelligence and the technology sector.

The apparent challenges in the region, including ongoing humanitarian problems crisis in Gazaseemed to take a back seat during their Oval Office appearance. These are the main conclusions from the meeting:

‘Good conversations’ about ties between Saudi Arabia and Israel

In recent months, Trump has repeatedly said he would like Saudi Arabia to join the so-called Abraham chordsthat established formal relations between Israel and several Arab countries.

On Tuesday, Prince Mohammed and Trump signaled possible progress on the issue without providing details or a timeline for a possible deal. However, the Crown Prince reiterated that Riyadh wants to promote the establishment of a Palestinian state as part of a possible deal.

“We believe that having a good relationship with all countries in the Middle East is a good thing, and we want to be part of the Abraham Accords,” Prince Mohammed told reporters.

“But we also want to make sure we secure a clear path [to a] two-state solution. And today we are having a healthy discussion with the Chairman that we need to work on that, to make sure that we can prepare the right situation as quickly as possible to make that happen.”

Saudi officials have previously emphasized Riyadh’s commitment to the Arab Peace Initiative, which makes Israel’s recognition conditional on the establishment of a Palestinian state.

Trump said he had had “good conversations” with Prince Mohammed about the issue.

“We talked about one state, two states. We talked about many things. We will talk about it further in a short time,” the US president said.

Trump suggests a defense pact is near

When asked if the US and Saudi Arabia have reached a defense deal, Trump said: “We pretty much have. We’ve reached an agreement on that.”

The details of the negotiations are not clear, but Riyadh is seeking a mutual defense pact with Washington, similar to that of NATO. Article Fiveallowing the US to come to the aid of the kingdom if it were attacked.

Trump had confirmed on Monday that he would authorize the sale F-35 fighter jets to Saudi Arabia.

During the meeting with MBS, he said the planes would not be downgraded to ensure Israel’s military superiority in the region, a departure from the US policy known as “qualitative military edge.”

“They would like you to get smaller caliber aircraft. I don’t think that will really make you happy,” he told the Saudi Crown Prince.

“They’ve been a great ally. Israel has been a great ally, and that’s exactly what we’re looking at right now. But for me, I think they’re both at a level where they should be at the top of the line.”

Trump says Iran wants a deal

Trump again expressed pride in the US attacks on Iran’s nuclear facilities in June.

“We did that on behalf of everyone and the result was extraordinary because we have the best pilots, the best equipment, the best aircraft and the best of everything,” he said.

The US president later switched to a softer tone toward Iran, saying Tehran is seeking a diplomatic solution with Washington, which has sought the dismantling of its nuclear program.

“I’m completely open to it and we’re talking to them,” Trump said.

“And we are starting a process. But it would be nice to make a deal with Iran. And we could have done that before the war, but we didn’t succeed. And something is going to happen there, I think.”

Saudi Arabia’s official news agency, SPA, had reported that MBS had received a handwritten letter to him from the Iranian president Masoud Pezeshkian before his trip to Washington. No details were known about its contents.

Prince Mohammed said on Tuesday that Saudi Arabia would support a deal between the US and Iran.

“We will do our best to help reach an agreement between the United States of America and Iran,” he told reporters.

“And we believe that it is good for the future of Iran to make a good deal that would satisfy the region, the world and the United States of America.”

$1 trillion in investments?

At the start of the two leaders’ public remarks, Trump expressed gratitude for the expected Saudi investments in the US, which he said will be in the hundreds of billions of dollars.

“I want to thank you for agreeing to invest $600 billion in the United States. And because he’s my friend, he might make $1 trillion for it, but I’m going to have to work on him,” Trump said.

He added that the Saudi funds will create jobs and resources for American companies and investment firms on Wall Street.

MBS, for his part, said Saudi investment in the US is likely to rise to $1 trillion.

“The agreement we are signing today in many areas – in technology and AI, in rare materials, magnets, etc. – will create many investment opportunities,” he said.

The crown prince reiterated Trump’s assessment that the US is now the “hottest country” in the world, adding that the kingdom wants to be part of the US’s “base of emerging technologies”.

Praise and smile

Trump and MBS were all smiles as they exchanged flattering comments from the moment the Crown Prince arrived at the White House.

At one point, Trump grabbed Prince Mohammed’s hand and held it while criticizing his predecessor, former US President Joe Biden, for only giving MBS a fist bump when he visited Riyadh during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021.

“I took that hand. I don’t care where that hand has been,” Trump said.

The US president described the Saudi crown prince as ‘fantastic’ and ‘brilliant’.

“We have a highly respected man in the Oval Office today, and a long-time friend of mine – a very good friend of mine,” Trump said.

“I’m very proud of the work he’s done. What he’s done is incredible in terms of human rights and everything else.”

The US president then reprimanded an ABC News reporter for asking Prince Mohammed a challenging question, accusing her of disrespecting his guest.

When the same journalist later asked Trump why he wouldn’t voluntarily release government records related to sex offenders Jeffrey EpsteinTrump said ABC News’ broadcasting license should be revoked.

“You start with a man who is highly respected and you ask him a terrible, disobedient and just terrible question,” Trump said, referring to the earlier question to MBS.

“And you could even ask the exact same question nicely. You’re all psyched. Someone psyched you at ABC. You’re going to do it psychically. You’re a terrible person and a terrible reporter.”

At about the same time that Trump welcomed MBS, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill to force the release of the Epstein files.