US President Donald Trump said today that Saudi Arabia has agreed to invest $600 billion in the United States, and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman promised that this investment will be increased to $1 trillion, Reuters reported, BTA reported.
"I want to thank you for agreeing to invest $600 billion in the United States. "Because he (Mohammed bin Salman) is my friend, he might invest up to $1 trillion, but I'll have to work with him," Trump said after welcoming Mohammed bin Salman to the White House earlier today.
In response, the Saudi crown prince said the kingdom would increase its investment in the United States to $1 trillion.
Reuters notes that Mohammed bin Salman's visit comes at a time when the Saudi crown prince is seeking to rehabilitate his image after the killing of US-based Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018 and deepen ties with Washington.
This is the crown prince's first visit to the White House in more than seven years and he was welcomed by Trump with a pompous ceremony on the South Lawn.
Trump said he spoke with Mohammed bin Salman and regarding the Abraham Accords, and expressed confidence that he would receive a positive response. The Saudi crown prince told reporters in the Oval Office that while Saudi Arabia wanted to be part of the Abraham Accords, which aim to normalize relations with Israel, the Saudi government wanted to make sure it had a clear path to a two-state solution.
The 2020 Abraham Accords, championed by Donald Trump during his first term in the White House, led to the normalization of relations between Israel and three Arab countries - the UAE, Bahrain and Morocco.
Trump also said that he and Mohammed bin Salman had also reached a defense agreement.