2023-06-07 00:01:37
The Saudi Press Agency, “SPA”, reported that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman met, at the Peace Palace in Jeddah, on Tuesday evening, with US Secretary of State, Anthony Blinken.
Archyde.com stated that bin Salman and Blinken discussed during their meeting the bilateral relations between the two countries and ways of cooperation in various fields.
Blinken emphasized that the Saudi-American relationship is reinforced by progress in the human rights file.
The US State Department said that the meeting discussed strengthening economic cooperation, especially in the fields of clean energy and technology, amid differences between the two countries on a number of issues, according to Archyde.com.
“The secretary … confirmed that our bilateral relationship is reinforced by progress in the human rights file,” said US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller.
He added, according to Archyde.com, that “the minister and the crown prince discussed strengthening economic cooperation, especially in the fields of clean energy and technology.”
According to Wass, during the meeting, the two sides discussed developments in the regional and international situation and the efforts exerted in this regard.
The Saudi agency indicated that the meeting was attended by the Kingdom’s ambassador to the United States, Princess Reema bint Bandar bin Sultan bin Abdulaziz, the Saudi Foreign Minister, Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah, and the Minister of State, Member of the Council of Ministers, National Security Adviser, Musaed bin Muhammad Al-Aiban.
On the American side, the meeting was attended by Blinken’s advisor, Derek Chollet, the US ambassador to the Kingdom, Michael Ratney, Assistant Secretary of State, Barbara Leaf, and Blinken’s deputy chief of staff, Tom Sullivan.
Archyde.com reported that after the visit of the National Security Adviser to the White House, Jake Sullivan, to Saudi Arabia, on May 7, the US State Department said that Blinken will go to the Kingdom on the second visit by a senior official in about a month.
Despite expectations of no breakthrough, analysts said that Blinken aims from this trip to restore some influence with Riyadh regarding oil prices, counter Chinese and Russian influence, and boost hopes for eventual Saudi-Israeli normalization.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a brief statement that the visit will extend from Tuesday to Thursday, and will discuss economic and security cooperation, as well as holding a meeting of the US-Gulf Cooperation Council and a conference to confront ISIS militants.
Blinken will address relations severely damaged by disagreements over Iran and the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018, and weakened with the erosion of the oil-for-security formula that maintained the alliance between the two countries for decades.
US President Joe Biden had a tense start with Riyadh after he said, in 2019, that he would make it a “pariah”, and shortly after taking office, in 2021, he allowed the disclosure of a US intelligence assessment that indicated that the Saudi Crown Prince, Prince Mohammed Bin Salman agreed to arrest or kill Khashoggi.
Saudi Arabia denied the crown prince’s involvement.
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