Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) congratulated Donald Trump on his return to the White House, saying in a name on Thursday that the dominion would massively increase its investments and commerce with the United States.
Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler handed on congratulations from his father, King Salman, throughout the name with Trump, in line with a Foreign Ministry assertion.
The crown prince added that the dominion would “expand its investment and trade with the United States to $600 billion over four years, and potentially beyond that.”
In his personal name with the crown prince on Thursday, new U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio mentioned Syria, Lebanon, Gaza and “the threats posed by Iran and its proxies,” in line with an announcement.
“They also discussed the benefits of the U.S.-Saudi economic partnership and the opportunities to grow their economies in a variety of fields, including AI,” a spokesperson for Rubio stated.
During his first administration, Trump actively courted Saudi Arabia, lengthy an vital vitality and safety associate for Washington.
His first abroad go to in 2017 was to the Saudi capital, Riyadh, the place he basked in an elaborate welcome involving a sword dance and a fly-past of Air Force jets.
Relations later cooled, with MBS faulting Trump for failing to reply extra aggressively after a 2019 assault extensively blamed on Iran halved the Gulf kingdom’s crude output.
Riyadh and Trump’s group nonetheless sought to spice up ties after his departure from the White House, particularly by way of investments and development offers for his privately owned conglomerate, the Trump Organization.
Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law, has additionally defended receiving a Saudi funding in his personal fairness agency that experiences put at $2 billion.
While on the marketing campaign path, Joe Biden criticized Saudi Arabia harshly for a number of points, together with the 2018 killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
But the connection with then-President Biden’s administration dramatically improved, and the 2 sides tried to barter a so-called mega-deal by which Saudi Arabia would acknowledge Israel in change for a protection pact with the U.S. and assistance on a civilian nuclear program.
That deal was placed on ice after the warfare started in Gaza in October 2023.
Source: www.dailysabah.com