JERUSALEM, Israel – A high-stakes meeting took place at the White House on Tuesday between President Donald Trump and Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman, with both leaders signaling that they’re ready to reboot the regional diplomacy and achieve peace in the Middle East.
The first visit of the Saudi crown prince in seven years came as the White House moved to deepen security ties and nuclear cooperation with the world’s largest oil exporter, a relationship President Trump has made central in his second term.
Bin Salman told Trump he wants Saudi Arabia to join the Abraham Accords, but only if there’s a clear path toward a two-state solution for Palestinians, something Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has insisted cannot happen.
The president noted, “I don’t want to use the word commitment, but we had a very good talk about the Abraham Accords – one state, two state – but I think you have a very good feeling around the Abraham Accords.” Bin Salman responded, “Yes, Mr. President, you are peaceful. You want peace for the Palestinians; we want peace in the region, and we will do our best to reach that.”
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The two also signed an agreement making Saudi Arabia a major non-NATO ally with the U.S., mirroring the security arrangement long in place with Israel. It includess selling F-35 Stealth Fighters and 300 U.S.-made tanks to the Kingdom.
The president went even further, disclosing that the Crown Prince has agreed to invest $600 billion in the United States, with a goal of pushing that investment to $1 trillion.
Trump once again defended bin Salman over the 2018 killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, contending that he “did not know” about the operation, which directly contradicted U.S. intelligence findings.
Bin Salman said of the incident, “About the (Washington Post) journalist, it’s really painful to hear, you know, anyone that has been losing his life for, you know, no real purpose or nothing in a legal way. And it’s been painful for us in Saudi Arabia. We did all the right steps of investigation, etcetera, in Saudi Arabia, and we’ve improved our system to be sure that nothing happened like that – and it’s painful and it’s a huge mistake – and we are doing our best that this doesn’t happen again.”
On a separate diplomatic track on Wednesday, U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff is set to meet in Istanbul with a senior Hamas delegation to shore up the ongoing ceasefire in Gaza.
Hamas has been defiant about disarming, but the U.S. is expected to push that demand as it works to keep the truce alive in the Gaza Strip.
