US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan will travel to Saudi Arabia this weekend for talks with Saudi leaders, as well as Indian and Emirates officials.
“He will be in Saudi Arabia this weekend to hold meetings with their leaders,” Sullivan said in a speech Thursday at the Washington Institute for the Near and Middle East regarding US strategy in the Middle East.
Speaking about the meeting with the Saudi leadership, Sullivan hinted that he would meet with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, adding: “My colleagues from the UAE and India will also come to Saudi Arabia as part of the meetings so that we can discuss new eras. cooperation between New Delhi and the Persian Gulf, as well as the United States and the rest of the world.” Region”.
He indicated that the situation in Yemen would be part of the discussion, and also touched upon the Middle East from Iran, Syria and Iraq to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and said: “Our commitment to the Middle East region is unwavering.” Speaking of the “campaign of deterrence and diplomacy” conducted by the administration of President Joe Biden two years ago.
The U.S. national security adviser said his country “has both a realistic and pragmatic strategy based on 5 core principles: partnership, deterrence, diplomacy and de-escalation, integration and protection of values.”
Sullivan stressed that Washington will do everything possible to prevent Tehran from acquiring nuclear weapons, given that the withdrawal from the 2015 nuclear agreement by former President Donald Trump is a “tragic mistake.”
On the other hand, when asked if Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would be invited to visit the White House, he replied: “When there is a visit that needs to be announced, we will do it.”
Sullivan’s visit comes amid tensions between Washington and Riyadh following the US president’s summer 2022 visit to the Kingdom, despite the two countries’ cooperation on a number of issues, including the recent crisis in Sudan.
US President Joe Biden has criticized Riyadh’s record of respect for human rights and its energy policy, even calling for a review of the relationship following the kingdom’s October decision to cut oil production.
And according to what the French Press Agency has pointed out, Sullivan’s visit to Saudi Arabia is part of a clear desire for rapprochement between Washington and Riyadh.
Source: AFP.