Donald Trump warmly welcomes Saudi Prince after seven years, first meeting since 2018
Washington: Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman visited the United States for the first time since the killing of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi by Saudi agents in 2018, with President Donald Trump giving Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman a warm welcome.
Trump warmly welcomed Prince Mohammed to the White House yesterday morning. US-Saudi relations have been strained by the operation targeting Khashoggi, a vocal critic of the kingdom, which US intelligence agencies later determined was likely directed by agents of Prince Mohammed.
even years later, the clouds over the relationship have lifted. Donald Trump has warmly welcomed the 40-year-old crown prince, whom he sees as indispensable in shaping the Middle East for decades to come.
Khashoggi was an afterthought as the two leaders unveiled billions of dollars in deals and met with aides to discuss the difficult path ahead in the Middle East. First Lady Melania Trump hosted a White House dinner in the evening to honor the prince.
The president dismissed questions from the crown prince about the journalist’s killing. In a meeting with the prince in the Oval Office, Trump praised the Saudi leader for Saudi Arabia’s progress on human rights, without providing any specific details.
The Crown Prince, for his part, announced that Saudi Arabia is increasing its planned investments in the US to $1 trillion. This is up from the $600 billion that Saudi Arabia said it planned to invest in the United States when Trump visited the kingdom in May.
