Trump Meets with the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia
On November 18, Donald Trump welcomed Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince, Mohammad bin Salman, to the White House in order to meet and discuss various matters. Before the meeting had even begun, Trump greeted the Prince with a jet flyover and a military band performance to mark the strength of America’s military power. This topic was a focal point of the meeting that was to come soon after, as Trump looked to discuss the military feats and potential cooperation between the two nations’ weapons.
A key talking point that reporters wanted to hone in on was the killing of Jamal Khashoggi in 2018 since this event was the Prince’s first meeting with Trump since then. Khashoggi was a journalist and a legal U.S. resident working for the Washington Post when he was killed and dismembered, seemingly by the order of the Saudi prince. When asked about Khashoggi’s murder, Trump first criticized Khashoggi for being “extremely controversial.” President Trump also noted that the Crown Prince claimed to know nothing about it. The Crown Prince stated that he thought the death was tragic and that the Saudi government have since taken all the necessary steps to improve their justice system.
Trump finalized an agreement to send F-35 fighter jets to Saudi, a move that has Israeli officials concerned about military competition in the Middle East. Pentagon officials are concerned this agreement could lead to China gaining access to more of America’s military technology. Trump dismissed both concerns, reaffirming his stance that this will only benefit all parties.
While giving few details, the Prince promised that the financial commitments to the US would increase from $600 billion to $1 trillion.
