Last Saturday, President Joe Biden finished his first four-day trip to the Middle East since taking office.
Biden’s four-day itinerary was packed with meetings with Israeli leaders and stops at West Bank. He attended the regional summit of Arab states at Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, and held a talk with the Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (also known as MBS).
Despite ferocious criticism, the awkward bump between Biden and MBS sent a strong signal around the world that the US reached out to amend relationship with Saudi Arabia. MBS was accused of complicity in the murder of Jamal Khashoggi, the Saudi dissident and Washington Post columnist. Since then, US-Saudi relationship was strained.
Biden’s top agenda was to increase oil production from Middle Eastern countries to lower soaring gas prices at home – a thorny problem before the mid-term election. However, the trip did not produce any concrete announcements on increased oil production.
“We’re getting results,’’ Biden insisted on Friday after a meeting with MBS, “Based on our discussions today, I expect we’ll see further steps in the coming weeks.”
Biden articulated in his opinion piece published in the Washington Post the utmost importance of countering Russia’s aggression and outcompeting China. He reasoned that strengthening a strategic partnership with countries in these regions based on mutual interests and responsibilities will be important.
Biden attempted to reassure allies that the US is committed to the Middle East, and reinsert American leadership in Middle East Affairs. “The United States is invested in building a positive future in the region in partnership with all of you, and the United States is not going anywhere,” Biden said at the meeting with the nine Arab leaders on Saturday.
The White House issued a joint statement later Saturday that said all the meeting’s participants “affirmed their keenness to continue to hold the U.S.-GCC Summit annually.”
Sources:
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/16/world/middleeast/biden-saudi-arabia-china-russia.html
https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/menasource/bidens-middle-east-trip-focuses-on-the-region-but-china-is-the-elephant-in-the-room/
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2022/07/09/joe-biden-saudi-arabia-israel-visit/
https://www.cnn.com/2022/07/16/politics/biden-middle-east-trip-takeaways/index.html
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2022/07/18/biden-middle-east-saudi-achieved-worth/
Biden’s four-day itinerary was packed with meetings with Israeli leaders and stops at West Bank. He attended the regional summit of Arab states at Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, and held a talk with the Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (also known as MBS).
Despite ferocious criticism, the awkward bump between Biden and MBS sent a strong signal around the world that the US reached out to amend relationship with Saudi Arabia. MBS was accused of complicity in the murder of Jamal Khashoggi, the Saudi dissident and Washington Post columnist. Since then, US-Saudi relationship was strained.
Biden’s top agenda was to increase oil production from Middle Eastern countries to lower soaring gas prices at home – a thorny problem before the mid-term election. However, the trip did not produce any concrete announcements on increased oil production.
“We’re getting results,’’ Biden insisted on Friday after a meeting with MBS, “Based on our discussions today, I expect we’ll see further steps in the coming weeks.”
Biden articulated in his opinion piece published in the Washington Post the utmost importance of countering Russia’s aggression and outcompeting China. He reasoned that strengthening a strategic partnership with countries in these regions based on mutual interests and responsibilities will be important.
Biden attempted to reassure allies that the US is committed to the Middle East, and reinsert American leadership in Middle East Affairs. “The United States is invested in building a positive future in the region in partnership with all of you, and the United States is not going anywhere,” Biden said at the meeting with the nine Arab leaders on Saturday.
The White House issued a joint statement later Saturday that said all the meeting’s participants “affirmed their keenness to continue to hold the U.S.-GCC Summit annually.”
Sources:
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/16/world/middleeast/biden-saudi-arabia-china-russia.html
https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/menasource/bidens-middle-east-trip-focuses-on-the-region-but-china-is-the-elephant-in-the-room/
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2022/07/09/joe-biden-saudi-arabia-israel-visit/
https://www.cnn.com/2022/07/16/politics/biden-middle-east-trip-takeaways/index.html
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2022/07/18/biden-middle-east-saudi-achieved-worth/
