Sources: Saudi Arabia Told U.S. to Keep Israel Normalization Off Agenda for Trump Visit

Date: 03 May 2025 - 21:45

News ID: ۱۳۹۱۱۸

RIYADH (Dispatches) – Saudi Arabia has set a ground rule for U.S. President Donald Trump and his entourage ahead of their visit to the kingdom in May: keep talk of normalization with the Zionist regime off the agenda.

That was the message delivered by Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan al-Saud during his visit to Washington DC last month to plan Trump’s visit to the kingdom and in follow-up discussions among senior officials, two Arab officials familiar with the talks told Middle East Eye.

While it’s common for diplomats to hash out the list of data-x-items to be discussed before a head of state’s visit, the Saudi request underscores the kingdom’s fear that Trump’s shoot-from-the-hip style could create an awkward moment on camera for Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

The crown prince has publicly slammed the Zionist regime for committing genocide in Gaza, tapping into his people’s anger over the occupying regime’s assault on the enclave, where over 52,000 people have been killed, mostly women and children, according to Palestinian officials.

“Saudi Arabia is serious not to be tricked into anything that regards Israel during the upcoming visit. It was made clear in DC,” one Arab official told MEE.

Prince Farhan met U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio at the State Department on April 9. The meeting was public, but Saudi Arabia setting out ground rules to dissuade discussions on normalization ahead of Trump’s visit has not been previously reported.

The Saudi embassy in Washington did not respond to MEE’s request for comment.

‘$3.5bn Arms Sale Approved’

The U.S. State Department has granted preliminary approval for a $3.5 billion agreement, authorizing the sale of advanced missiles and weaponry to Saudi Arabia, as confirmed by the Pentagon, before Trump’s scheduled visit to the region later this month.

The package features 1,000 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missiles (AMRAAM) and 50 AIM-120C-8 AMRAAM guidance sections for Saudi Arabia.

The proposed sale is now being reviewed by the U.S. Congress. Legislators usually evaluate these deals and may, at times, prevent them from proceeding.

In March, Washington authorized the sale of precision-guided weapon systems to Saudi Arabia, continuing a series of U.S.-Saudi arms agreements during Trump’s administration.

Trump is set to make his first overseas trip later this month, with Saudi Arabia as his initial stop, followed by visits to the UAE and Qatar.

In his first term, Trump celebrated weapons sales to Saudi Arabia as good for U.S. jobs.

Trump signed a massive $110 billion arms deal with the Saudis during his maiden overseas trip to Riyadh in May 2017, boasting that it was going to make and save “billions of dollars and millions of jobs” in the U.S.

The United States guarantees that its close ally the Zionist regime receives more advanced American weapons than Arab states, giving it what is labeled a “Qualitative Military Edge” (QME) over its neighbors.