USA Trump flatters Saudi Arabia and backs investment

SDA

23.1.2025 - 18:33

People watch a virtual speech by US President Donald Trump at the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos. Photo: Markus Schreiber/AP/dpa
People watch a virtual speech by US President Donald Trump at the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos. Photo: Markus Schreiber/AP/dpa
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US President Donald Trump has announced that Saudi Arabia will invest billions in America and has courted the country despite the political tensions of recent years. Trump said via video link at the World Economic Forum in Davos that Saudi Arabia wanted to invest at least 600 billion US dollars (577 billion euros) in the USA. "But I'm going to ask the crown prince, who is a fantastic guy, to round it up to about a trillion," the Republican said, adding: "I think they will do that because we've been very good to them."

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Trump had spoken to Saudi Arabia's crown prince and de facto ruler Mohammed bin Salman on the phone shortly after his inauguration. According to the White House, it was his first phone call with a foreign leader since being sworn in. Trump's new Secretary of State Marco Rubio had also spoken to the Saudi crown prince right at the start of his term in office.

First trip abroad in return for billions in investments?

Immediately after being sworn in, Trump was asked which country could be the destination of his first trip abroad. The President said that in his first term of office, he had first traveled to Saudi Arabia because the country had announced investments of 450 billion dollars at the time. When asked whether he could now travel there first again, he said that this would be possible if they were prepared to invest another 450 or 500 billion dollars.

The USA's relationship with its long-standing partner Saudi Arabia had soured in recent years during the term of office of Trump's predecessor Joe Biden. The murder of the anti-government journalist Jamal Khashoggi in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul in 2018 severely strained relations. The Biden administration was also annoyed by the cut in oil production determined by the Opec countries led by Saudi Arabia. However, Biden had also recently sought close ties with the influential country again, which earned him criticism.