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President Joe Biden confirmed on Tuesday that he would visit Saudi Arabia next month for talks with its leaders, a dramatic change in his stance on the kingdom he had called an “undesirable” country when he was running for president.
With his visit to be part of a July 13-16 trip to the Middle East, where he will also travel to Israel and the West Bank, Mr. Biden is withdrawing from his tough stance on Saudi Arabia over the breach. of human rights.
He is trying to revive relations at a time when the United States may need the help of the oil-rich country to reduce rising fuel prices domestically and worldwide.
The visit to Saudi Arabia will include talks with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the kingdom’s de facto leader, according to the White House and Saudi officials. U.S. intelligence officials have said Prince Mohammed may have ordered the assassination of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018.
In a brief exchange with reporters on Tuesday, Mr Biden reacted nervously when asked about his upcoming visit to Jeddah, noting that his team had issued a statement on “everything I will do in the Middle East”. .
Human rights defenders and some Democrat allies warned President Biden that such a visit without first seeking human rights commitments would send a message to Saudi leaders that there are no consequences for serious human rights abuses. rights. The Saudis have been accused of using mass arrests, executions and violence to quell dissent.
But at a time of rising fuel prices, growing concerns about Iran’s nuclear program and continuing concerns that China is expanding its presence, Mr Biden and his national security team have concluded that it is not in the interests of The United States to isolate the Saudis, especially the crown prince.
The Saudi embassy in Washington said the visit was at the invitation of the country’s king “to strengthen historic bilateral relations and strategic partnership” between the two countries.
The White House announced the trip after Saudi Arabia pushed OPEC this month to increase oil production by 648,000 barrels per day in July and August, and the kingdom agreed to extend a United Nations-brokered ceasefire with Yemen. Mr Biden called the Saudi ceasefire decision “courageous”.
Prince Mohammed, commonly known by his initials, MBS, played a “critical role” in mediating an extension of the ceasefire, according to a senior administration official who briefed reporters on condition of anonymity.
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said King Salman invited President Biden to visit the kingdom during a meeting in the port city of Jeddah of the six Gulf Cooperation Council countries – Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia. and the United Arab Emirates – as well as Egypt, Iraq and Jordan.
She hinted that Mr. Biden would raise human rights concerns with Saudi officials, but did not respond directly to whether the president would talk to Prince Mohammed about the killing of journalist Khashoggi.
“It’s important to note that although we are rebalancing the relationship, we are not trying to break it down,” said Jean-Pierre. “But human rights issues, human rights talks (are) something that the president raises with many leaders and plans to do in this case as well.”
Mr Biden’s first stop on the Middle East tour will be in Israel for a long-planned meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett in Jerusalem. He will then meet with Palestinian Authority leaders, including Mahmoud Abbas, in the West Bank. Biden will close the trip with a visit to Jeddah./VOA
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