Saudi Arabia on Tuesday promised billions of dollars in deals with the United States, from defence to artificial intelligence, as it threw a lavish welcome for President Donald Trump on the first state visit of his second term.
The Saudis escorted Air Force One into the kingdom with fighter jets before bringing out long-stretching guards of honour and sending flag-waving cavalry to accompany Trump’s motorcade to the palace.
Under imposing chandeliers, Trump welcomed a promise by Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, for $600 billion in investment and quipped that it should be $1 trillion.
“We have the biggest business leaders in the world here today, and they’re going to walk away with a lot of cheques,” Trump told the prince.
For “the United States, it’s probably two million jobs that we’re talking about,” Trump said.
The White House said that Saudi Arabia would buy nearly $142bn in weapons in what it described as the largest-ever weapons deal, although Trump in his first term trumpeted a larger, longer-term figure.
The White House said that Saudi company DataVolt will invest $20bn in artificial intelligence-related sites in the United States, while tech firms including Google will invest in both countries — welcome news for Saudi Arabia, which has long faced restrictions in US advanced technology.
With cameras rolling, a lengthy procession of Saudi royalty and business figures waited their turn to shake hands with Trump and the crown prince, including Elon Musk, the world’s richest person and a close advisor to Trump, who made a rare appearance in a suit.
The US leader will head later in the week to Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, fellow oil-rich Arab monarchies with long-standing ties to the United States — and to Trump.
In choosing the Gulf for his first major tour, the 78-year-old billionaire is again bypassing traditional presidential stops among Western allies, some of which have been unnerved by his norms-shattering diplomacy.
Eight years ago, Trump also chose Saudi Arabia for his first overseas trip, when he posed with a glowing orb and participated in a sword dance.
Saudis seek image change
Trump’s embrace of the Saudis contrasts with a more hesitant initial approach by former president Joe Biden, who had vowed to punish the crown prince after US intelligence found that he ordered the murder of dissident Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018.
Trump reminisced with the 39-year-old crown prince over their first meeting, saying he was “so impressed with this young guy who was very wise beyond his years”.
Since Khashoggi’s gruesome killing, Saudi Arabia has worked aggressively to change its image, from easing restrictions on women to diversifying from oil to new areas such as artificial intelligence.
The country has also increasingly exercised diplomatic clout, serving as a venue for the United States to pursue talks with Ukraine and Russia.
Qatar and the United Arab Emirates have also sought outsized international roles, with the Qataris serving as a mediator along with the United States and Egypt in the Israel-Hamas conflict.
Jon Alterman, senior vice president at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies, said that for Trump, the Gulf “is his happy place”.
The leaders will “flatter him and not criticise him. And they’ll treat his family members as past and future business partners,” he said.
Israel and Trump at odds over Iran nuclear strategy
Israel is threatening military action against Iran while US President Donald Trump pursues diplomacy, exposing a growing rift between the long-time allies over how to confront the Islamic Republic’s advancing nuclear programme.
As a fourth round of indirect talks between Iran and the US kicked off in Muscat on Sunday, Israel’s Foreign Minister Gideon Saar emphasised that his country would not allow Tehran, under any circumstances, to develop its nuclear programme.
“The most dangerous regime must not be allowed to obtain the world’s most dangerous weapon,” said Saar.
Like Western countries, Israel suspects its arch foe Iran of wanting to acquire nuclear weapons.
Tehran denies these allegations, defending its right to civilian nuclear energy.
“If military operations are necessary […] so be it,” said Israeli President Isaac Herzog in an interview published this week by the German newspaper Die Welt, while also stating that he wanted to give “dialogue a chance”.
In 2015, Iran and several major powers signed an agreement regulating Tehran’s nuclear development, including uranium enrichment, in exchange for the gradual lifting of sanctions that had been imposed on the country since the mid-2000s.
Military Option
However, in 2018, the United States, during Trump’s first term, withdrew from the agreement, rendering the deal largely ineffective.
Since then, Iran has resumed much of its nuclear activities.
The country is now enriching uranium up to 60 per cent, well above the 3.67pc limit set by the agreement, but still below the 90pc threshold required for making nuclear weapons, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
Since his return to the White House, Trump has initiated new negotiations, which Israel opposes.
Israeli officials have also expressed irritation at another agreement made behind their backs between Washington and Huthi rebels in Yemen.
“Israel insists that the (nuclear) agreement be much more comprehensive (than the one in 2015) and that Iran not be allowed to domestically enrich uranium,” geopolitical analyst Michael Horowitz told AFP.
According to him, Israeli authorities now believe that “Tehran can quickly develop a weapon if it chooses to.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who applauded Trump’s withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal in 2018, has emphasised that Israel is prepared to use all means necessary to stop the Islamic Republic from developing its nuclear capacity.
“The deal that truly works is the one that eliminates Iran’s ability to enrich uranium for nuclear weapons,” he said in late April, urging for the complete “dismantling” of the nuclear programme.
‘Awkward position’
“There are currently many voices in Israel suggesting that there is a window of opportunity to use military force if necessary,” said Raz Zimmt, director of Iran studies at the Institute for National Security Studies (INSS) in Tel Aviv.
According to him, the idea of strikes on Iranian nuclear infrastructure is motivated by two factors.
The first being the perception that Iran has been weakened after Israel targeted its defence systems in October 2024.
Secondly, the fact that Hezbollah, the Lebanese-based militant group, is also diminished after its war with Israel in 2024, and thus “incapable of retaliating” to defend Tehran, its major ally.
Experts interviewed by AFP say that if Israel were to strike Iranian nuclear sites, the United States would likely be expected — at the very least — to be ready to defend Israel in the event of Iranian retaliation.
“A strike with the support or even participation of Washington can be much more effective,” said Horowitz.
“Trump’s positions are putting Israel in an awkward position: he (Netanyahu) doesn’t want to be at odds with the new administration, but he is beginning to understand that Trump wants a deal at all costs.”
Zimmt says, however, that “it is highly unlikely that Netanyahu would oppose Trump” if the latter signed an agreement with Iran.
