Trump praises military sales in talks with MBS
WASHINGTON: Saudi Arabia’s crown prince received an effusive welcome at the White House yesterday from US President Donald Trump, who hailed a “great friendship” with the kingdom and praised US defense sales to Saudi Arabia as a boost to American jobs In Oval Office talks, Trump and Prince Mohammed bin Salman discussed an agreement last year for $200 billion worth of Saudi investments with the United States, including large purchases of US military equipment. Trump said the military sales contributed to the creation of 40,000 American jobs.
The talks were part of the first visit by the prince to the United States since he became the heir apparent last June to succeed King Salman. Trump produced charts to show the depth of Saudi purchases of US military hardware, ranging from ships to missile defense to planes and fighting vehicles. “The relationship now is probably as good as it’s really ever been and I think will probably only get better. Tremendous investments made in our country and that means jobs for our workers,” Trump told reporters during a picture-taking session with the crown prince.
As they talked, US senators debated a resolution seeking an end to US support for Saudi Arabia’s campaign in Yemen’s civil war. Some members of Congress have been critical of the Saudi campaign, particularly the humanitarian situation and
civilian casualties. A Saudi-led coalition is fighting to counter the influence of Iran, an ally of the Houthi militia, who deny any help from Tehran and say they are fighting a revolution against corrupt politicians and Gulf powers in thrall to the West.
The crown prince, in a rare foray into speaking English, said the Saudi pledge for $200 billion in investments will end up at $400 billion when fully implemented. He said a 10-year window for implementing the deal was already underway. “This is a signal that there (are) a lot of things (that) could be tackled in the close future and more opportunities. And that’s why we are here today, to be sure that we’ve tackled all the opportunities and achieve it and also get rid of all the threats facing our both countries,” he said.
The two leaders were also expected to discuss tensions with Iran, Riyadh’s regional archrival and a country Trump has repeatedly criticized for its expansionist policies in the Middle East. Though the prince, 32, has won Western plaudits for seeking to ease Saudi Arabia’s reliance on oil, tackle chronic corruption and reform the conservative kingdom, the severity and secrecy of an anti-corruption crackdown last November has unnerved some investors.
Trump, touching on the sensitive shaking out happening
inside the kingdom, said “some tremendous things have happened since your last visit to the White House”. “You were the crown prince, and now you are beyond the crown prince,” he said, before adding that he misses Mohammed’s father, King Salman, and hopes to see him soon. Prince Mohammed’s reformist message and the promise of Saudi investment in the United States has endeared him to the neophyte US president - 39 years his elder - and America’s own political princeling Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law.
Trump and MBS - as he is known in Washington’s corridors of power - have seen eye-to-eye on concerns about Iran’s military activism, Middle East peace, relaxing Saudi Arabia’s deeply conservative laws and over their love for big ticket mega-investments. “Saudi Arabia is a very wealthy nation and they are going to give the United States some of that wealth hopefully, in the form of jobs, in the form of the purchase of the finest military equipment anywhere in the world,” Trump said.
Prince Mohammed is on a public relations blitz while traveling in the United States, with stops in New York, Boston, Seattle, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Houston. Trump and the crown prince underscored the strength of US-Saudi ties which suffered under the Obama administration. Saudi Arabia, a decades-long US ally, felt neglected by President Barack Obama’s pursuit of a 2015 nuclear deal with Iran, Riyadh’s regional rival.
As Prince Mohammed arrived in Washington, word trickled out that Saudi Aramco - the kingdom’s energy behemoth was cooling on the idea of a stock listing in New York, something Trump has publicly lobbied for. — Agencies