National Security Council Coordinator for the Middle East, Brett McGurk, is in Saudi Arabia to finalize US President Joe Biden’s visit to the kingdom scheduled for July 15, according to the website.Axios“.
The American website said that Biden’s trip, which will reset his administration’s relations with the Gulf kingdom, is seen as diplomatically and politically sensitive, as he is expected to meet with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, during his visit to Jeddah.
The White House did not respond to Axios’ questions about McGurk’s trip to Saudi Arabia.
Biden arrives in Saudi Arabia after a visit to Israel and the West Bank, where he takes his plane directly from Tel Aviv to Jeddah.
During his visit to Jeddah, Biden will participate in a summit with the leaders of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, Egypt, Jordan and Iraq. In addition, the US president will hold a bilateral meeting with Saudi leaders focusing on repairing relations and the US need to increase Saudi oil production and on the steps for normalization between the Kingdom and Israel, according to the US website.
Biden once vowed to make Saudi Arabia a “pariah” and relations have been strained over a number of issues, including the kingdom’s human rights record and the murder of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi.
US intelligence concluded that Mohammed bin Salman “authorized” the killing or arrest of Khashoggi, a claim Saudi Arabia denies.
And last week, the president said that the visit to Saudi Arabia would deal with deepening Israel’s integration in the region, “which is good for peace and Israel’s security” and ending the war in Yemen.
Last month, the Washington Post wrote about the visit, citing unnamed officials, that Biden’s “face-to-face” meeting with the Saudi crown prince would come after several “undeclared” missions in the wealthy Gulf state conducted by Biden’s Middle East adviser Brett McGurk and his envoy for affairs. Energy Amos Hochstein, who repeat calls for increased crude oil production in order to reduce inflation.