Donald Trump warmly embraced Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Tuesday, feting the fearsome Muslim ruler with a flyover of US fighter jets.
It marks the first White House visit since Saudi agents killed Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018.
Trump, in an apparent breach of royal protocol, placed his hand on Prince Mohammed’s back as warplanes soared over the White House – a display of deep respect reserved for America’s closest allies.
The president showed the crown prince his newly decorated ‘Presidential Walk of Fame’ before the pair headed inside for discussions.
America’s relationship with the Gulf state had been sent into a tailspin by the assassination of Khashoggi, a fierce critic of the kingdom, in 2018.
The journalist, who lived in Virginia and worked as a columnist for the Washington Post, was invited to the Saudi consulate in Istanbul where he was ambushed by 15 agents, suffocated and hacked to pieces. His remains have never been found.
Prince Mohammed denies any involvement but US intelligence believes it is likely he directed the agents to carry it out.
Despite the stain hanging over Prince Mohammed, Trump views him as an indispensable player in shaping the Middle East for decades to come.
The Trump family also has substantial private business interests in Saudi, including a colossal residential skyscraper planned for the capital Jeddah.
US President Donald Trump greets Crown Prince and Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Mohammed bin Salman on the South Lawn at the White House
Trump rolled out the red carpet for the blood-soaked leader, with warplanes roaring over Washington DC
The president showed the crown prince his newly decorated ‘Presidential Walk of Fame’ before the pair headed inside for discussions
Trump places a hand on Prince Mohammed’s back as he welcomes him to the White House
In a sign of the deepening ties between America and Saudi, Trump announced earlier that he would approve the sale of F-35 jets to the Islamic kingdom.
The landmark deal means Saudi is the first Middle Eastern country, except for America’s longstanding ally Israel, to access the state-of-the-art fighters.
Besides the F-35 deal, a White House official indicated a working relationship with Israel and a US-Saudi partnership are also on the table for discussion.
Trump told reporters in the Oval Office, that Saudi Arabia ‘wants to buy.’
‘We will be doing that. We will be selling F-35 jets,’ Trump said. ‘They’ve been a great ally.’
Traditionally, the United States has green-lit the sale of fighter jets to military friends, like countries that are a part of NATO.
This move would effectively change the balance of defense and military power in the region.
In response, Israel has asked the president to ‘condition the sale,’ saying they are not opposed to it, but that it needs to be ‘subject to Saudi normalization of Israel.’
Trump places his hand on the crown prince’s back as the pair watch a military procession
Trump and Prince Mohammed watch a flyover of military aircraft on the South Lawn at the White House
Trump gestures as Prince Mohammed grins as the president shows off the ‘Walk of Fame’
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent walk down the colonnade
Trump and the crown prince chat outside the White House on Tuesday
Trump welcomes the crown prince surrounded by dignitaries and military
A procession of cavalry bearing the green Saudi flag outside the White House
Trump and the crown prince beside the portrait of Joe Biden’s autopen, a dig at the former president
Trump and Prince Mohammed at the colonnade at the White House
Trump and Crown Prince and Prince Mohammed bin Salman walk down the Colonnade on the way to the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC on November 18
If the US-Saudi fighter jet agreement goes through, Israel may ask for security assurances. It takes just minutes for an F-35 plane to fly from Saudi to Israel.
Analysts say the announcement might not actually results in the country receiving the fighter jets anytime in the near future.
‘The devil will kind of be in the details there,’ Andrew Leber, a nonresident fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace who has done extensive research on Saudi Arabia, told NBC news.
He noted that a prior deal made with the United Arab Emirates also fell through, saying the same could happen this time around.
Congress could review the potential deal and could stop it from going forward.
Saudi Arabia is a country where the Trump family has a significant financial stake, with multiple active projects including Trump Tower in both Riyadh and Jeddah.
The Trump Organization also announced a new project on the heels of Salman’s arrival with their Saudi-linked development partners Dar Global, opening in the Maldives in 2028.
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