Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman called Donald Trump early Wednesday to express his joy at the Republican’s return to power, according to two people with knowledge of the exchange.
Trump had strengthened America’s relations with Saudi Arabia during his previous tenure. Bilateral relations during the administration of President Joe Biden were initially soured by Biden’s criticism over the 2018 murder of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi in the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul.
Saudi Arabia’s 39-year-old de facto ruler made the call shortly after Trump delivered his victory speech in Palm Beach, Florida, said two of the people, who did not want to be identified because they were discussing a private matter.
A Trump spokesman did not respond to a request for comment.
Trump told the Saudi-owned Al Arabiya news channel last month that one of his priorities would be to extend the Abraham Accords, which would include normalizing relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia. The agreement was signed in 2020 during Trump’s first term and established diplomatic relations between Israel and Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates.
Trump told Al Arabiya that Saudi Arabia’s relations with the US “can never be good with a guy like Biden.”
“It would be great with me and I have a lot of respect for Saudi Arabia,” he said.
Trump and the crown prince have often praised each other publicly, and Trump visited Saudi Arabia when he became president in 2017.
After a cold start under Biden, relations between the two countries began to improve as the two countries began negotiations on a defense treaty linked to Riyadh’s recognition of Israel and technological and nuclear cooperation.
Riyadh has hardened its position on normalizing ties since the Israel-Hamas war and the conflict’s spread to Lebanon. The state says that future relations with Israel depend on the establishment of a Palestinian state.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
