RIYADH: President Joe Biden and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman exchanged greetings from each other before the US leader left the kingdom on Saturday.
Biden's four-day visit to Israel and Saudi Arabia his first as president was aimed at re-establishing ties with the Gulf Arab oil giant demonstrating American commitment to the region, and increasing ties to Iran, Russia and China.
However, the Saudi leg was marred by strange optics as Biden avoided hugging a crown prince implicated by US intelligence in the brutal 2018 murder of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi a charge Saudi officials denied.
According to Biden, he spoke to Prince Mohammed, also known as MBS, about the killing. MBS didn't budge and told Biden that America had made mistakes too.
Even if Biden did not return from the Middle East with a firm commitment to increasing oil production from Saudi Arabia or broad public support for US efforts to forge a regional security alliance that would include Israel, the visit was not a total failure.
The iconic photo of the visit will be Biden's fistfight with Prince Mohammed in front of the royal palace in Jeddah White House officials disagreed over whether MBS should be honored with a visit.
In the end, they came to the conclusion that this was important to US interests and would help both countries turn the page in order to maintain a strategic relationship with Saudi Arabia, which has been lasting 80 years. Riyadh took a number of important steps to clear the way for the visit, including supporting a UN-mediated ceasefire in the Yemeni conflict, a major achievement for Biden, who expressed US support for Saudi Arabia's offensive. was drawn. In addition, it helped OPEC+ to rapidly increase its already authorized oil production.
Support for the Yemeni ceasefire and the Nine Arab Leaders' Summit are both unquestionably successful. But according to Bruce Riedel, a fellow at the Brookings Institution for Foreign Policy, these successes have come at the cost of a fistful.
Biden traveled to Saudi Arabia in an effort to persuade a powerful OPEC member to increase oil production, but the country remained firm on its stance that it should operate within the parameters of the OPEC+ coalition, which also includes Russia, and unilaterally action should not be taken. ,
As he prepares for crucial congressional elections in November, high fuel prices have contributed to increased inflation both domestically and internationally. The US and Israel signed a joint declaration on Thursday, pledging to stop Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons, in a sign of unity between allies long over diplomatic differences with Tehran. The announcement was part of Biden's efforts to garner support from allies in the region for US efforts to revive the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran.
Saudi Arabia and Israel were dissatisfied with the initial nuclear deal reached by former President Barack Obama's administration and rejoiced when Biden's predecessor, Donald Trump, pulled out of the deal.
Assuring them that the United States is ready to use force as a last resort if talks break down and Iran continues what the West considers a program to develop nuclear weapons, Biden is now pleading for patience. doing. Tehran claims it has no plans to develop nuclear weapons.
According to Saudi Arabia and the UAE, concerns about Iran's missile program and local allies in the region must be addressed.
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