President Donald Trump has confirmed his first overseas trip will take him to Saudi Arabia as early as next month. The trip will likely include stops in Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.
"I have a very good bond with the Middle East," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. He spoke warmly of his personal connection with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. "He's great and wonderful," the president added.
Economic Matters Take Centre Stage in Talks
Trump aims to finalise agreements valued at nearly $1 trillion between Washington and Riyadh. The Saudi Crown Prince has expressed willingness to invest $650 billion in the US over the next four years.
“They’ve agreed to spend close to a trillion dollars in American companies, which to me means jobs,” Trump said. This dwarfs the $350 billion arms deal signed during his first term visit.
The United Arab Emirates has also pledged to invest up to $1.4 trillion in the U.S. over ten years. Their condition involves access to cutting-edge semiconductors to build artificial intelligence infrastructure.
“I view it as jobs more than anything else, and now we’re close to a trillion dollars,” Trump explained. “So it’s more than double the number that we did when I first came to office.”
Gulf Nations Now Central to Global Diplomacy
Qatar has become a mediator for the US in efforts to end the Gaza war. The country helps secure swap agreements and has assisted in bringing back wrongfully detained Americans from Afghanistan.
Saudi Arabia has stepped into a major diplomatic role by hosting peace negotiations between Ukraine and Russia. The kingdom has hosted talks between Washington and Moscow as well as Washington and Kyiv in recent weeks.
This contrasts sharply with the 2017 visit when the Gulf focused mainly on regional affairs. The region has carved out a new place for itself on the world stage since then.
Abraham Accords Expansion Remains Top Goal
Expanding the Abraham Accords ranks as a prime goal of Trump’s second term. The agreements normalized relations between Israel and several Arab states during his first term.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated in February that "peace between Israel and Saudi Arabia is not only feasible; it's going to happen."
However, Saudi officials have maintained that recognition still requires a pathway to a Palestinian state.
U.S. and Israeli officials say plans for a normalization deal have been put on the back burner.
How The World Has Changed Since 2017
Trump’s first presidential trip to Saudi Arabia in May 2017 received a grand welcome. King Salman greeted Trump and first lady Melania Trump personally at the airport in Riyadh.
When Trump landed in 2017, American and Saudi flags lined the highways. Billboards featuring Trump’s face decorated the capital. Trumpets played as jets flew overhead streaming red, white and blue contrails.
The 2017 visit focused on building partnerships to end radicalization. Trump delivered a speech to 55 leaders of Muslim-majority countries calling for unity against extremism.
Now in 2025, Trump returns to a fundamentally altered global arena.
Economic Diplomacy Powers Growing Weight
Since 2017, Gulf nations have harnessed their financial might to build diplomatic power abroad.
These nations pursued a strategy of economic diplomacy that has paid off handsomely.
Saudi Minister of Investment Khalid al-Falih stated his country persists in seeing the US as its top destination for investments. “When we look where to invest, the US comes always high as the top investment destination,” al-Falih said.
Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund, the Public Investment Fund, now manages more than $900 billion in assets. Its economic heft translates directly into political power.
The UAE has similarly leveraged its wealth to boost its standing. Their offered $1.4 trillion investment sweetens diplomatic connections with the US while advancing their technological ambitions.
A Region That Cannot Be Ignored
Secretary of State Marco Rubio declared that bolstering connections with Riyadh was a top priority for the Trump administration. The statement followed meeting Saudi Arabia’s Defence Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman in Washington.
Trump’s decision to make Saudi Arabia his first foreign destination signals how tight the association between his administration and Gulf countries has grown. Economic cooperation and investment have cemented these links.
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