Trump grants Saudi Arabia special military status amid nuclear ambitions
- Billion-dollar investments: AI, chips, energy and semiconductors
- Abraham Accords as long as there is a Palestinian state
- Trump's defence of Bin Salman for the murder of Khashoggi: ‘these things happen’
- Bin Salman and the 9/11 attacks
With Navy music and an unprecedented military display, Donald Trump welcomed Saudi Crown Prince Mohamed bin Salman (MBS) on his first visit to the White House in seven years. As part of the ceremony, Donald Trump flew over the famous F-35 fighter jets that he announced he would sell to Riyadh on Monday.
The main focus of the meeting was the signing of investment agreements in the areas of artificial intelligence (AI), strategic minerals, defence and nuclear energy. The event concluded with a gala dinner attended by personalities such as Cristiano Ronaldo, the face of the Saudi Pro League.
Billion-dollar investments: AI, chips, energy and semiconductors
In fact, during the press conference, the US president insisted to Bin Salman that the investment figure announced by both in May during Trump's last visit to Riyadh should be increased from $600 billion to $1 trillion. ‘He is my friend [Salman], I am sure we will agree to increase Saudi investment in America,’ Trump said.
‘We are not creating fictitious opportunities to please Donald Trump. These are real opportunities. Saudi Arabia is modernising its capacity in terms of AI and chips. We have enormous demand, especially for semiconductors,’ Bin Salman told the press.
Saudi Arabia's investments will be divided between the short term, to meet the needs identified by the crown prince, and the long term, to create a solid foundation to support the economic growth of the country and the Middle East region.
However, the underlying motive for Saudi investments in the United States is to establish Saudi Arabia as a nuclear power. It should be remembered that a few months ago, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan – the only Muslim country with nuclear capability – signed a ‘mutual defence’ agreement, which would indicate Saudi aspirations to obtain ‘the nuclear weapon’ in the field of national defence.
Abraham Accords as long as there is a Palestinian state
Along with the investments and the sale of F-35 fighter jets, Donald Trump considered it urgent for Bin Salman to join the Abraham Accords, of which the United Arab Emirates, Morocco and Bahrain are part.
However, Bin Salman insisted: ‘We want to be part of the Abraham Accords, but we also want to ensure that the path to a future Palestinian state is secured within the framework of the two-state solution.’
Saudi Arabia has established itself as the only country in the Arab League with the most advanced American technology. This move was questioned by Pentagon sources, who pointed out that there is a possibility that China could replicate this American technology.
Trump's defence of Bin Salman for the murder of Khashoggi: ‘these things happen’
Since the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia arrived in the United States, the shadow of the murder of the famous Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi has been present in the questions from the press.
Aware of this, the American president defended his ‘great friend’. ‘He's done a great job.’ ‘He didn't know anything about who everyone knows. He was an extremely controversial person. A lot of people didn't like him. Whether they liked him or not, these things happen, but he didn't know anything about it,’ Trump said.
However, documents from the FBI and the CIA revealed that Mohamed bin Salman should have been aware of what happened. Khashoggi's murder at the Saudi embassy in Istanbul, Turkey, caused global outrage, to which MBS responded that it was ‘a very painful event for Saudi Arabia and a big mistake’. He added that the incident had been properly investigated.
Finally, Trump added that ‘we should not embarrass our guest with these questions,’ a response that perfectly illustrates how far Donald Trump is willing to go when business is at stake.
Bin Salman and the 9/11 attacks
What happened on 11 September 2001 in New York changed the course of history. Security and defence were revived as essential foundations. But above all, it created an unfair feeling of Islamophobia in the collective imagination.
The Saudi origin of the terrorists who attacked the World Trade Centre that day has cost decades of progress for the Saudi economy. In this regard, the Crown Prince dedicated a few words and a reflection on what happened that day.
‘Since you asked me about it, I will answer you. I am deeply saddened for the families of 9/11 in the United States, but we must focus on reality. The reality, based on CIA documents and many other documents, is that Osama Bin Laden used Saudi citizens in that event for one main purpose: to destroy this relationship between the United States and Saudi Arabia. That was the purpose of 9/11. So anyone who accepts that version is helping Osama Bin Laden's goal of destroying this relationship. He knew that a strong relationship between America and Saudi Arabia is detrimental to terrorism and extremism. And we have to prove him wrong and show that building our relationship, continuing to develop our relationship, is crucial to the security of the world. It is fundamental in the fight against extremism and terrorism.’