Trump, Saudi prince seek stronger ties
Leaders aim to boost relations after tense period under Obama
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump hosted Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia for lunch at the White House on Tuesday, moving to forge a warmer relationship with the kingdom after a period of tension between the United States and a long-standing ally.
The lunch was an early effort by Trump to engage with Mohammed, the defense minister of Saudi Arabia. Hopes are high in Riyadh for improved relations with the United States after strained diplomacy between the Obama administration and the Saudis, particularly over the nuclear deal with Iran.
The visit — initially expected to be a short meet-and-greet but turned at the last moment into a formal lunch — was a chance for the two men to also discuss Yemen, where a civil war has pitted Iranian-aligned Houthi rebels against a Saudi-led coalition of mostly Sunni Arab countries with U.S. support, and where the United States is stepping up a campaign against al-Qaida. Trump faces a decision on whether to resume arms sales to the Saudis.
The president was expected to urge Saudi Arabia to support safe zones in Syria, which the administration has argued would be an alternative to accepting thousands of refugees from a country ripped apart by six years of civil war.
‘Happy to see Obama go’
Trump and members of his inner circle regard Saudi Arabia as a vital component of the White House strategy to get Middle East allies to help break the deadlock in the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians. That approach is said to be favored by Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law and senior adviser, who has been tasked with forging a peace between the two sides.
The president and his top aides “see Saudi Arabia as a crucial part of the Middle East and an important country to have a positive relationship with, even if there are irritants,” said Simon Henderson, the director of the Gulf and Energy Policy Program at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. “This is at odds with the Obama administration, so they want to make that clear distinction.”
Saudi Arabia and its Persian Gulf neighbors have been optimistic about Trump’s presidency, largely because of their deep frustration at what they called Obama’s refusal to forcefully engage in Middle Eastern issues like the war in Syria. They are encouraged by Trump’s business background, his lack of interest in human rights and, most importantly, his vow to take a hard line against Iran.
“They were happy to see Obama go,” Bruce Riedel, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, said of the Saudis.
“Trump has made it clear he is not worried about supporting human rights or freedom; he’s made clear that el-Sissi is going to be his best friend in Egypt; that all those difficult questions about gender equality and the like are going to be off the table for the next four years, and that Iran is very much on the table,” Riedel said. “As the Saudis look at Trump, they see they don’t need to worry about any of that.”
Merkel delayed by storm
Riedel said the Trump administration — and particularly Jim Mattis, the secretary of defense — “recognizes that we need to clarify that signal with the Saudis, and the best way to do it is with the king’s favorite son.”
Mohammed, 31, is second in line to the throne. He oversees Saudi Aramco, the state-owned oil company, and serves as defense minister, putting him in charge of the Saudi-led intervention in Yemen. Saudi officials see the Houthis in Yemen as a national threat and would like greater U.S. assistance in the fight against them. Saudi Arabia is a major buyer of U.S. weapons.
Trump had been scheduled to spend much of his day Tuesday with Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany. A snowstorm that blanketed much of the northeastern United States prompted Merkel to delay her visit until Friday, leaving Trump’s lunch hour available for Mohammed.