Ambitious Saudi prince mounts epic US charm offensive
WASHINGTON: Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed Salman doesn’t do things by halves, and his meeting yesterday with President Donald Trump is just the beginning of a threeweek US tour.
Hot on the heels of securing his role as de facto Saudi leader and launching a controversial reform drive, the ambitious 32-year- old is keen to cement ties with the kingdom’s most important ally.
Relations with the US ‘are at an all-time high,’ Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al- Jubeir, a former ambassador to Washington, boasted at a news conference on the eve of the White House talks.
After a week of meetings in Washington, Prince Mohammed will head to the US financial centre in New York on Saturday.
There he will discuss the planned partial sale of Saudi Aramco, the kingdom’s oil giant and the golden egg underpinning the prince’s Vision 2030 strategy of economic and social reform.
The IPO, with the potential of raising roughly US$ 100 billion based on a valuation of US$ 2 trillion for Aramco, would be the world’s largest- ever share offering.
London, Hong Kong and New York were competing to host the offer, but Riyadh fears the firm would be exposed to litigation if listed in the United States, and reports Monday could disappoint all three.
According to The Wall Street Journal, officials are now planning to offer the stock solely on the Saudi exchange, and waiting to see if it is worth seeking an international listing later.
While in New York, MBS, as he is often known, will also meet United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres, head of an organisation that has criticised Saudi conduct of the war in Yemen.
Saudi Arabia leads a coalition fighting the Huthi rebels, who are allegedly backed by Iran, but has come under criticism for strikes on civilian targets and blockades of humanitarian aid.
The heir to the Saudi throne will not expect much pushback from the White House, though.
Trump’s administration has been firmly behind the Sunni kingdom as it frames all its conflicts as part of a confrontation with Shiite Iran. — AFP