Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense, held talks in Washington on Tuesday with US President Donald Trump on bilateral relations and current and future investment opportunities between their countries.
Meeting Trump at the White House, he the Saudi pledge for $200 billion in investments, announced last year, will end up at $400 billion when fully implemented. He said a 10-year window for implementing the deal was already underway.
"This is a signal that there (are) a lot of things (that) could be tackled in the close future and more opportunities. And that’s why we are here today, to be sure that we’ve tackled all the opportunities and achieve it and also get rid of all the threats facing our both countries," he added.
The Crown Prince said that the US and Saudi Arabia can tackle "a lot of things" together in the future, hailing the "very deep" relations between the two countries.
“We are keen to bolster ties with the US and the foundation of our strong friendship,” he stressed,
Prince Mohammed had arrived in the US on Tuesday as part of a three-week tour of the country.
For his part, Trump highlighted the close US-Saudi ties.
He noted that the relations were “strained” during former President Barack Obama's tenure but that he and the Crown Prince have become "very good friends in a short period of time."
He said Saudi Arabia has been a great friend to the US and is a "great purchaser" and "investor" in its economy.
Trump said the military sales contributed to the creation of 40,000 American jobs.
Trump produced charts to show the depth of Saudi purchases of US military hardware, ranging from ships to missile defense to planes and fighting vehicles.
“The relationship now is probably as good as it's really ever been and I think will probably only get better. Tremendous investments made in our country and that means jobs for our workers," Trump told reporters.
Prince Mohammed and Trump also tackled counter-terrorism efforts, with the US leader saying that Washington has "zero tolerance" for funding of terrorism.
