Trump plans to offer 100bn arms sale to Saudi Arabia during visit: Report
US President Donald Trump plans to offer to sell Saudi Arabia $100bn worth of weapons when he visits the kingdom in May, according to a report by Reuters.
The Trump administration is working on the package with an eye towards announcing it during Trump's visit to the kingdom, Reuters reported, citing six sources with direct knowledge of the issue.
Trump said he planned to make Saudi Arabia his first overseas visit in March. He said he would only go if there was a financial incentive for American businesses.
"I made a deal with Saudi Arabia... I said I'll go if you pay $1 trillion to American companies, meaning the purchase over a four-year period of $1 trillion, and they've agreed to do that," Trump told reporters.
Trump made Saudi Arabia his first overseas visit during his first term as well, patching up ties that had frayed between Riyadh and Washington under the Obama administration. He said Saudi Arabia pledged $450bn in investments to entice him on the first visit.
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The White House publicly confirmed on Tuesday that Trump will visit Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Qatar between 13-16 May.
US and Saudi to discuss F-35 sale
The US's top defence companies, including Lockheed Martin, RTX Corp, Boeing, Northrop Grumman and General Atomics will be involved in the arms package, Reuters reported.
Saudi Arabia has been eyeing several advanced US-made weapons systems, including MQ-9B SeaGuardian-style drones.
Saudi Arabia and the US are also expected to discuss the sale of advanced F-35 warplanes, the report said.
The UAE was promised F-35s by the former Trump administration as part of a deal to normalise ties with Israel under the Abraham Accords, but those talks faltered when former President Joe Biden's administration raised concerns about Chinese influence in the Emirates.
Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states purchase American weapons with their own sovereign funds, but major arms sales must be reviewed by members of Congress before they are sealed.
Israel and Egypt receive most of their weapons via foreign military aid, meaning US taxpayers purchase the weapons on their behalf.
Still, Israel has long maintained a influence on what arms the US sells Arab states as part of a process to retain its so-called qualitative military edge over its neighbours.
For example, Middle East Eye revealed that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has lobbied US Secretary of State Marco Rubio against allowing Turkey back into the F-35 programme.
Trump says Saudi will join Abraham Accords
The arms package comes as the Trump administration eyes a normalisation deal between Saudi Arabia and Israel.
“I think Saudi Arabia will go into the Abraham Accords,” Trump told Time Magazine in an interview published on Friday. “I think it will be full very quickly,” he added, referring to the deal.
Trump has a slew of files to address with Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman.
The kingdom has been involved in foreign policy issues such as nuclear talks with Iran, the proposed reconstruction of the Gaza Strip, and brokering early peace talks between Russia and Ukraine.
Mohammed bin Salman enjoyed close ties to Trump’s inner circle during his first term in office. He forged a friendship with Trump’s adviser and son-in-law, Jared Kushner, and later invested in his private equity group, Affinity Partners.
Despite this history, until recently there have been sore points in the relationship between the second Trump administration and Saudi Arabia.
Trump eyes Iran, energy and Gaza
The kingdom ignored Trump’s call to pump more oil at the beginning of the year, but has since led an energy alliance with Russia and other states dubbed Opec+ in boosting production. Oil prices have slumped as a result of new supply and economic headwinds stemming from concerns about Trump's tariffs.
Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states have also imposed a ban on the US against using their airspace to launch strikes on Iran, MEE reported.
Trump's bid to normalise ties between Israel and Saudi Arabia is also frustrated by Israel's resumption of its war on Gaza.
Mohammed bin Salman has publicly accused Israel of committing a "genocide" in Gaza. American diplomats and analysts are trying to decipher how much of his rhetoric is for domestic consumption and walked back.
But Saudi Arabia has said that a Palestinian state must be created as a pre-condition to normalising with Israel. American and Arab officials say Trump hopes to secure a Nobel Peace Prize for brokering a deal between Israel and Saudi Arabia.
While the US has a history of supplying Saudi Arabia with weapons, the relationship took a hit after Saudi Arabia’s killing of US-based journalist Jamal Khashoggi in Turkey.
Biden vowed to turn Mohammed bin Salman into a "pariah" over Khashoggi's killing and human rights issues, but was forced to backtrack amid rising energy prices and wars in Ukraine and the Middle East.
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