US President Donald Trump said he could make Saudi Arabia the destination for his first foreign visit after his election if Riyadh agrees to buy $450 to 500 billion dollars’ worth of American products, as he claims they had done upon his inauguration and visit in 2017.
Answering questions from reporters about his plans for his first international trip following his inauguration on Monday, Trump said: “[The first foreign trip typically has been with [the] UK, but we did it I did it with Saudi arabia last time because they agreed to buy 450 billion dollars worth of our products”.
“I said I’ll do it but you have to buy American products and they agreed to do that, they bought 450 billions, it was the least reported story I’ve ever been involved in”.
“Well I don’t know if Saudi Arabia wanted to buy another 450 or 500 — we’ll up it for all the inflation — [then]I think I would probably go there”.
Donald Trump was elected the 45th President of the United States following a contentious election in 2016 that saw him defeat Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton. He was inaugurated as 47th president on Monday after defeating Joe Biden, who had beaten Trump in 2020.
Trump’s 2017 visit to Saudi Arabia marked a historical moment as it was the first time a U.S. president chose a Middle Eastern country for their inaugural foreign trip. The visit included a summit with leaders from the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and emphasized counterterrorism efforts, economic cooperation, and opposition to Iran’s regional influence.
During the trip, a $110 billion arms deal with Saudi Arabia was announced, projected to total $350 billion over a decade, though subsequent reports and fact-checks questioned these numbers. The Associated Press in 2018 noted that Saudi Arabia had signed letters of intent for significantly smaller amounts, with only $14.5 billion in confirmed purchases by that point.Â
The Trump administration sought to strengthen ties with Gulf nations, prioritizing arms sales and economic partnerships while supporting Saudi-led efforts against Iran and its allies. However, these relations were occasionally strained by controversies, including the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018, which led to bipartisan criticism of U.S. support for Saudi Arabia.
