Trump boasts Saudi business deals as he basks in royal welcome
U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday trumpeted major business deals with Saudi Arabia as he basked in a lavish royal welcome on the first state visit of his second term.
The Saudi hosts escorted Air Force One into the kingdom with fighter jets before bringing out long-stretching guards of honor and sending flag-waving cavalry to accompany Trump's motorcade to the palace.
Under imposing chandeliers, Trump welcomed a promise by Saudi Arabia's de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, for $600 billion in investment and quipped that it should be $1 trillion.
"We have the biggest business leaders in the world here today and they're going to walk away with a lot of cheques," Trump told the prince.
For "the United States, it's probably two million jobs that we're talking about," Trump said.
With cameras rolling, a lengthy procession of Saudi royalty and business figures waited their turn to shake hands with Trump and the crown prince, including Elon Musk, the world's richest person and close advisor to Trump, who made a rare appearance in a suit.
Trump, the crown prince and their cabinet members later ceremonially signed a series of cooperation agreements including on economic ties and defense.
The US leader will head later in the week to Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, fellow oil-rich Arab monarchies with long-standing ties to the United States.
In choosing the Gulf for his first major tour, the 78-year-old billionaire is again bypassing traditional presidential stops in Western allies, some of which have been unnerved by his norms-shattering diplomacy.
Eight years ago, Trump also chose Saudi Arabia for his first overseas trip -- when he posed with a glowing orb and participated in a sword dance.
Trump's embrace of the Saudis contrasts with a more hesitant initial approach by former president Joe Biden, who had vowed to punish the crown prince after U.S. intelligence found that he ordered the murder of dissident Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018.
Trump reminisced with the 39-year-old crown prince over their first meeting, saying he was "so impressed with this young guy who was very wise beyond his years".
- Saudis seek image change -
Since Khashoggi's gruesome killing, Saudi Arabia has worked aggressively to change its image, from easing restrictions on women to pursuing initiatives in new areas such as artificial intelligence.
The country has also increasingly exercised diplomatic clout, serving as a venue for the United States to pursue talks with Ukraine and Russia.
Qatar and the United Arab Emirates have also sought outsized international roles, with the Qataris serving as a mediator along with the United States and Egypt in the Israel-Hamas conflict.
Jon Alterman, senior vice president at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said that for Trump, the Gulf "is his happy place".
"His hosts will be generous and hospitable. They'll be keen to make deals. They'll flatter him and not criticize him. And they'll treat his family members as past and future business partners," he said.
According to a Saudi official close to the defense ministry, Riyadh will push to secure the latest US F-35 fighter jets along with state-of-the-art air defense systems worth billions of dollars.
- Lavish plane -
Not to be outdone, Qatar has offered a luxury Boeing aircraft for Trump to refurbish as Air Force One and then keep after he leaves the White House.
Trump's Democratic rivals have called the gift blatant corruption. Trump has hit back that it was "very public and transparent" and said: "I would never be one to turn down that kind of an offer."
An ultimate prize, pushed both by Trump and Biden, has been to persuade Saudi Arabia, home of Islam's holiest sites, to take the landmark step of recognizing Israel.
But Israel normalization is not likely to feature high on the agenda on Trump's trip, with Riyadh insisting a Palestinian state must be established first.
Israel has cut off all food and other supplies to Gaza for more than two months as it pursues a new offensive against Hamas militants.
The United States, which has quietly been frustrated with its ally, negotiated directly with Hamas to secure the release of a hostage with U.S. citizenship, Edan Alexander, to whom Trump spoke by telephone Tuesday.
Tensions over Iran will likely feature prominently in the talks in the Gulf, after four rounds of nuclear talks between the Trump administration and Tehran.
Source: Agence France Presse
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