{"id":56317,"date":"2025-11-19T14:01:47","date_gmt":"2025-11-19T14:01:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/trump-and-saudi-crown-prince-forge-new-defense-and-economic-ties-in-washington\/"},"modified":"2025-11-19T12:17:02","modified_gmt":"2025-11-19T12:17:02","slug":"trump-and-saudi-crown-prince-forge-new-defense-and-economic-ties-in-washington","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/trump-and-saudi-crown-prince-forge-new-defense-and-economic-ties-in-washington\/","title":{"rendered":"Trump and Saudi Crown Prince forge new defense and economic ties in Washington"},"content":{"rendered":"

The visit featured a formal military salute, a flyover of U.S. fighter jets, and other displays of military power, underscoring Washington\u2019s commitment to deepening ties with Riyadh.<\/p>\n

The meeting between Trump and Prince Mohammed focused on a range of strategic, defense, and business initiatives that could significantly impact the future trajectory of U.S.-Saudi relations. Among the most notable outcomes of the visit was the announcement of a potential sale of advanced F-35 fighter jets to Saudi Arabia, a shift in U.S. policy. <\/p>\n

Historically, Israel had been the only country in the Middle East authorised to purchase the F-35. Trump stated, “We\u2019ll be selling the F-35s” to Saudi Arabia to enhance its defense capabilities. The move marks a shift in U.S. defense policy, potentially altering the balance of military power in the region.<\/p>\n

In addition to military cooperation, Trump and Prince Mohammed discussed various business ventures, including partnerships in nuclear energy and investments in U.S. technology sectors, particularly artificial intelligence. <\/p>\n

The talks were part of Trump’s broader effort to encourage foreign investment in the U.S. and further strengthen economic ties with Saudi Arabia, a key partner in the region. Additionally, both leaders explored opportunities to expand Saudi investment in U.S. infrastructure projects.<\/p>\n

However, the visit was not without controversy. The U.S.-Saudi relationship has been strained since the 2018 killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, with U.S. intelligence agencies concluding that Prince Mohammed approved the operation. The Prince has consistently denied ordering the murder. <\/p>\n

During the Washington visit, Trump described Khashoggi as \u201cextremely controversial\u201d and asserted that the crown prince \u201cknew nothing about it.\u201d He further defended the Crown Prince, calling him \u201cone of the most respected people in the world\u201d and urging reporters not to \u201cembarrass our guest by asking a question like that.\u201d<\/p>\n

For his part, Crown Prince Mohammed acknowledged that Khashoggi\u2019s killing was a \u201chuge mistake\u201d and described the event as \u201cpainful.\u201d He maintained that Saudi authorities conducted a full investigation and implemented reforms to prevent a similar incident in the future, while reiterating that he personally did not approve the operation.<\/p>\n

The discussions between Trump and the Crown Prince are expected to lead to several significant agreements, particularly in defense and business sectors. However, the broader implications for U.S.-Saudi relations, especially concerning human rights, will likely remain a topic of ongoing debate in the years to come.<\/p>\n

\"President<\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

President Donald Trump on Tuesday, November 18, hosted Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) at the White House in a high-profile meeting that signalled a renewed focus on U.S.-Saudi strategic and economic relations. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":131,"featured_media":2000097916,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[75],"byline":[201],"hashtag":[],"class_list":["post-56317","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-homenews","byline-rania-umutoni"],"bylines":[{"id":201,"name":"Rania Umutoni","slug":"rania-umutoni","description":"","image":{"id":0,"url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/?s=96&d=mm&f=y&r=g","alt":"Default avatar","title":"Default avatar","caption":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","sizes":[]},"user_id":139}],"contributors":[{"id":201,"name":"Rania Umutoni","slug":"rania-umutoni","description":"","image":{"id":0,"url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/?s=96&d=mm&f=y&r=g","alt":"Default avatar","title":"Default avatar","caption":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","sizes":[]},"user_id":139}],"featured_image":{"id":2000097916,"url":"https:\/\/en-images.igihe.com\/IMG\/logo\/default.jpg","alt":"","caption":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","width":0,"height":0,"sizes":{"thumbnail":{"url":"https:\/\/en-images.igihe.com\/IMG\/logo\/default.jpg","width":1,"height":1},"medium":{"url":"https:\/\/en-images.igihe.com\/IMG\/logo\/default.jpg","width":1,"height":1},"medium_large":{"url":"https:\/\/en-images.igihe.com\/IMG\/logo\/default.jpg","width":1,"height":1},"large":{"url":"https:\/\/en-images.igihe.com\/IMG\/logo\/default.jpg","width":1,"height":1},"full":{"url":"https:\/\/en-images.igihe.com\/IMG\/logo\/default.jpg","width":0,"height":0}}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56317","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/131"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=56317"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56317\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2000097916"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=56317"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=56317"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=56317"},{"taxonomy":"byline","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/byline?post=56317"},{"taxonomy":"hashtag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/hashtag?post=56317"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}