Alliance eyed as Arab NATO
Prez to pitch anti-terror pact in Saudi visit
President Trump wants to create an anti-terrorism alliance with Saudi Arabia and other friendly Mideast nations in a pact White House officials likened to an “Arab NATO,” it was reported Wednesday.
A major part of the plan would be one of the largest weapons deals between the United States and the Saudis in history, according to The Washington Post.
Team Trump and the Saudis have quietly been negotiating terms of the pact during talks led by Trump senior adviser Jared Kushner and Saudi Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
The talks began after the election, when Mohammed sent a delegation to meet with Kushner — the president’s son-in-law — and other administration officials at Trump Tower.
“They were willing to make a bet on Trump and on America,” a senior White House official told the paper.
The Saudis want to boost economic and security cooperation and investment, White House officials said.
Trump wants the Saudis to beef up the fight against radical Islamic terrorism, specifically ISIS.
The Trump administration plans to make a number of major announcements during his first over- seas trip as president, which begins Friday.
The top objective is to form a Sunni Muslim coalition of countries that would set the stage for the NATO-like organization.
“We all have the same enemy and we all want the same thing,” the White House official told the paper. “What this trip hopefully will do is just change the environment.”
Other participants could include the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Jordan. The US would support the alliance without becoming a member.
“This is the sort of gesture many of America’s security partners have been looking to get from the United States for many years,” said Brian Katulis, a senior fellow at the Center of American Progress.
“The value of any such a pact would depend on the results it produces — whether it achieves greater stability, helps resolve conflicts like Yemen and Syria, and achieves progress in the fight against terrorist groups across the region.”
The arms deal could be worth as much as $350 billion over 10 years and would include sales of ships, missile-defense systems and armored personnel carriers for the Saudi army and navy, officials said.
Saudia Arabia will be Trump’s first stop on a trip that will also take him to Israel, Italy, the Vatican and Belgium.