Politica 89.8
When and why will Donald Trump go to Saudi Arabia?
The significant choice of the American president to host the talks between American and Russian officials regarding the war in Ukraine in Riyadh last March was not accidental.
This desicion hides the deep desire of the American president to emphasize the role of Riyadh in the region, so that it has a bargaining chip in order to convince the Saudis to join the so-called Abraham. Accords and on the second round to officially recognize the state of Israel. Saudi Arabia is among the countries that have condemned the war in the Gaza Strip and maintains a firm position that it will not recognize Israel until a Palestinian state is established.
The determined – in all his ways – Trump did not stop here. He plans to visit Saudi Arabia on May 13. For this reason, a few days ago, the country’s foreign minister, Prince Faisal bin Farhan, visited Washington, met with Marco Rubio in order to prepare for the state official visit.
The Americans and Saudi Arabia will also sign a preliminary agreement on energy cooperation and cooperation in civilian nuclear technology, as recently announced by US Secretary of Energy Chris Wright.
But let’s look at why Saudi Arabia matters to Trump.
During his previous presidential term, from 2017-21, Trump made his first foreign trip to the wealthy Gulf monarchy, long a close US partner in the Middle East. Trump has maintained close ties, with a focus on business, while the kingdom’s sovereign wealth fund has invested billions of dollars to companies run by Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, and former Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin.
In 2018, Saudi Arabia welcomed Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw the US from the international agreement on Iran’s nuclear program and reimpose economic sanctions on Tehran.
Oil, which Trump has talked about so much, remains a key pillar of the economy even amid lower oil prices and production. The kingdom’s growing mining industry is also a key part of its “Vision 2030” plan to diversify the economy. Trump will also pay a visit to two other countries on May 14-16, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. And here business is the main reason. Just a month ago, the Americans approved the sale of eight MQ-9B drones to Qatar for $1.96 billion (1.82 billion euros).
Geopolitically, Qatar, this tiny Gulf emirate with large natural gas reserves, plays a mediator role in indirect negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas. As for the Emirates, they are asking from Washington for easier access to American technology to create their own high-tech industry, but the Americans have expressed concerns about the good relations they maintain with China.
Trump’s visit to these three Middle Eastern countries is undoubtedly of enormous economic importance. To this should be added the excellent personal relations that Trump maintains with Netanyahu in the Middle East. Maintaining the balance between the Arab states and the Jewish state is a big bet on how he will manage to keep everyone happy.
