Trump, Saudi look to strike deals as mutual ties deepen

Bloomberg

President Donald Trump welcomed Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman as a friend of the US. “A lot of people are at work” because of Saudi Arabia’s business, Trump said, adding that the kingdom has finalised $12.5 billion in purchases of planes, missiles and frigates from US companies.
Crown prince Mohammed praised the kingdom’s “really deep” relationship with the US and said the Saudis are considering $400 billion in US investment opportunities. “A lot of things could be tackled in the close future,” the prince added.
Crown prince Mohammed is starting a three-week trip across the US, his first visit since being designated the successor for his father, King Salman bin Abdulaziz. The US and Saudi Arabia are developing an increasingly close partnership, encompassing everything from isolating Iran to bolstering business ties beyond energy into technology, defense and entertainment, according to top US and Saudi officials.
The Trump administration has adopted a pro-Saudi posture that is a dramatic shift from the Obama administration, which was cool to Saudi Arabia, according to advocacy groups such as Amnesty International. Trump has signalled he won’t seek to impose US values on countries that support American foreign policy and economic objectives — and crown prince Mohammed arrives in the US ready to cut deals.
The kingdom’s sovereign wealth fund announced on Monday that it would take a $400 million stake in Endeavor, one of Hollywood’s biggest talent and event managers. More deals are likely during Prince Mohammed’s trip, which runs through April 7.
One focus of crown prince Mohammed’s meeting with Trump will be expanding cooperation to counter Iran’s influence in the Middle East, according to White House officials who briefed reporters before the crown prince’s arrival. The agenda was also expected to include a discussion of Trump’s continued efforts to develop a Middle East peace plan.
Crown prince Mohammed bin Salman also said he sees a “stable” oil market ahead, adding that the kingdom has an 84-year supply of crude. Trump opened a session with reporters by asking the prince where he saw oil prices going and how much petroleum the kingdom still had.
Officials said Trump will also seek to negotiate an end to a simmering dispute between a Saudi-led bloc and Qatar, a key US ally the Saudis hold of helping to finance terrorism. Outgoing Secretary of State Rex Tillerson repeatedly failed to negotiate an accord between the two sides. Trump will emphasise the importance of a strong and unified Gulf Cooperation Council.
Any agreement among the Gulf nations could be formalised at a Trump-hosted gathering at the presidential retreat at Camp David, Maryland, where the Egyptian-Israeli peace accord was first struck in the Carter administration, the administration officials said.
Beyond the Oval Office meeting with Trump, National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster, believed earlier this month to be possibly leaving the administration, will host a dinner for Prince Mohammed. The Saudi leader will also meet Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin, Labor Secretary Wilbur Ross, House Speaker Paul Ryan and Central Intelligence Agency Director Mike Pompeo, Trump’s pick to replace Tillerson.
The high-profile tour and meetings with top officials across government signals a relationship between two nations that’s almost unrivaled since Trump took office in January 2017.
Traditional allies in London, Berlin and Ottawa have seen ties strained as the Republican president upends, or threatens to upend, historic trade and security agreements. Even South Korea, which has been at the center of Trump’s biggest foreign policy crisis — North Korea’s nuclear missile development — hasn’t been spared from criticism of its trade deal with the US.
In New York, the crown prince will host a forum for business executives and meet United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres. From the capital of US finance, he’ll travel to the nation’s technology centers, meeting with philanthropic groups as well as leaders of companies including Google, Apple Inc., and Lockheed Martin Corp.
Finally, the crown prince will visit Saudi oil company Aramco’s research center in Houston on April 7 before returning to Riyadh. Mohammed’s visit is probably not the last by a top Saudi leader this year.