Trump speaks with Saudi crown prince, in first call with foreign leader since White House return

Jacob Magid is The Times of Israel's US bureau chief

US President Donald Trump shakes hands with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on May 20, 2017. (AP/Evan Vucci)
US President Donald Trump shakes hands with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on May 20, 2017. (AP/Evan Vucci)

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman becomes the first foreign leader to hold a phone call with US President Donald Trump since he returned to office this week for a second term.

The decision to first speak with MBS indicates the Trump administration’s priorities, with the president expressing his desire to expand the Abraham Accords with a normalization agreement between Israel and Saudi Arabia.

The deal would likely be part of a massive defense agreement that Riyadh is looking to sign with Washington, which would provide Saudi Arabia with security guarantees from the US if it faces attack and be accompanied by huge investments in the American economy.

Bin Salman told Trump that Saudi Arabia would like to expand its investments in the US over the next four years to $600 billion and that the figure could further increase “if additional opportunities become available,” according to a readout published by Saudi state media.

Trump told Saudi crown prince that he looks forward to working with Riyadh to advance common interests, the Saudi readout adds.

There is no readout immediately available from the White House.

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