Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman told President Donald Trump on Jan. 22 that his kingdom will invest $600 billion in the United States over the next four years to boost trade relations.
Prince Mohammed congratulated Trump on his inauguration during a phone call and expressed his kingdom’s desire to expand its investments in the United States during Trump’s four-year term.
The ministry said that Trump’s expected reforms in the United States would lead to “unprecedented economic prosperity.”
The White House said their discussion touched on efforts to bring peace and stability to the Middle East, bolster regional security, and combat terrorism.
“Additionally, they discussed the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s international economic ambitions over the next four years as well as trade and other opportunities to increase the mutual prosperity of the United States and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia,” the readout states.
Before their talk, Trump told reporters on Monday that he would consider going to Saudi Arabia for his first foreign visit if it is willing to buy $500 billion worth of American products.
“The first foreign trip typically has been with the UK but I did it with Saudi Arabia last time because they agreed to buy $450 billion worth of our products,” Trump said in the Oval Office. “If Saudi Arabia wanted to buy another $450 billion or 500, we’ll up it for all the inflation, I think I’d probably go.”
“I’ll be asking the crown prince, who’s a fantastic guy, to round it out to around $1 trillion,” he said by videocall. “I think they’ll do that because we’ve been very good to them.”
Prince Mohammed also spoke with Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Jan. 22. State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said they discussed Syria, Lebanon, Gaza, and “the threats posed by Iran and its proxies.”
In an interview with Bloomberg at the WEF, Saudi Arabian Minister of Finance Mohammed Al-Jadaan said the oil-rich nation already has active investments worth more than $770 million in the United States.
Riyadh denied any involvement by the crown prince.