Top Saudi prince to meet Trump at White House

RIYADH, SAUDI ARABIA — The White House confirmed Monday that President Donald Trump will meet this week with Saudi Arabia’s second-in-line to the throne in the highest-level visit to Washington by a Saudi royal since November’s presidential election.

In his daily press briefing, White House press secretary Sean Spicer said the meeting with Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who is also defence minister and King Salman’s son, will take place Thursday at the White House. No other details were provided.

The Saudi royal court, in a statement carried by the official Saudi Press Agency earlier Monday, said Prince Mohammed will meet with Trump and a number of U.S. officials to discuss “the strengthening of bilateral relations between the two countries and regional issues of mutual interest.”

The prince, who departed for Washington on Monday, is spearheading the kingdom’s economic overhaul to become less dependent on oil and its major investments in U.S. technology firms.

He will be the first Gulf Arab royal to meet the president since his inauguration.

Key issues at the top of the agenda are likely to include global energy prices, as well as the conflicts in Syria, Iraq, Libya and Yemen, where a Saudi-led coalition backed by Washington has been bombing Iran-backed Shiite rebels for nearly two years.

Saudi Arabia, the world’s top oil exporter and biggest buyer of American-made arms, is also part of the U.S.-led coalition bombing campaign against the Islamic State group in Syria.

Saudi relations with Washington cooled under President Barack Obama after his administration secured a nuclear deal with regional rival Iran.

The deal has been heavily criticized by Trump.

Obama had also openly criticized Gulf Arab countries, expressing frustration at their feud with Iran.