Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman praised US President Donald Trump on Tuesdayp is efforts to “achieve peace” in the world and said Saudi Arabia would invest up to $1 trillion in the United States.
The crown prince said this during a meeting with US President Donald Trump at the White House.
“I believe, Mr. President, today and tomorrow we can announce that we will increase that $600 billion to almost $1 trillion in investment, real investment and real opportunity in many areas – technology, artificial intelligence, magnet, etc.,” the prince said.
“Okay, I like that a lot,” Trump said.
“Now you’re telling me that $600 billion is going to be $1 trillion?” Trump asked.
“Certainly,” replied the prince.
The prince went on to say that what Trump is creating is not just about opportunities for today, but will affect the American economy for decades to come.
Mohammed bin Salman (MSB), as Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler is known, also praised Trump for his ‘peace efforts’.
Warm welcome, praise
Upon his arrival in Washington, Trump warmly welcomed Prince Mohammed to the White House for a ceremony.
“We have an extremely distinguished man in the Oval Office today… It’s an honor to be your friend — and an honor to have you here.”
Trump also called Mohammed bin Salman “a friend of mine for a very long time” and praised his father.
“I want to thank you because you’ve agreed to invest (more than) $600 billion in the United States … we really appreciate that … What this really means to everyone, what really counts is JOBS.”
When you invest a trillion dollars, that’s national security for us as well, Trump said, adding: “Because it creates jobs. It creates a lot of things. That’s a real ally to do that. It creates great power for the United States.”
“The murder of Jamal Khashoggi was a huge mistake”
The Saudi crown prince said the 2018 killing of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi was a “huge mistake.”
Prince Mohammed said of the killing by Saudi agents: “It is painful and a huge mistake and we are doing everything we can to make sure it doesn’t happen again.”
But Trump dismissed criticism of the crown prince, saying “things happen.”
Calling Khashoggi “extremely controversial,” Trump said: “A lot of people didn’t like the gentleman you’re talking about, whether you like him or not, things happened, but he (the prince) didn’t know anything about it.”
