https://arab.news/vkhpk
It has become well known that US President Donald Trump enjoys a distinctive relationship with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. The two leaders are now meeting again in Washington.
Between Trump’s two trips to Riyadh, the first in 2017 and the second just six months ago, the world shifted. In those eight years, major events reshaped the region and the international landscape, from rising US competition with China and the war in Europe to multiple fronts igniting across the Middle East and its strategic waterways.
Given this official and personal bond between the president and the crown prince, expectations are high about how their latest meeting will influence relations between their countries and the wider region. In Washington, I heard extensive policy discussions about what this visit could achieve and what its implications might be for peace with Israel, ties with Iran, the region’s geopolitical balance and the long-term economic, military and nuclear partnership that Riyadh and Washington are trying to structure through the mid-21st century and possibly beyond.
Expectations are high about how their latest meeting will influence relations between their countries and the wider region
