by Jarrett Renshaw and Nandita Bose
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Joe Biden will meet Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, whom the U.S. president once called an “outcast,” during a visit to the Middle East scheduled for July, as Washington seeks ways lower oil prices in the United States.
Since Joe Biden arrived at the White House in January 2021, relations between the United States and Saudi Arabia have been strained over Riyadh’s human rights record, particularly because of the assassination of dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi in Turkey in 2018 – the American intelligence services said they had established the involvement of “MbS”, which Riyadh denied.
While former US President Donald Trump had established a close relationship with the Saudi Crown Prince, Joe Biden promised during the 2019 presidential election campaign to make Saudi Arabia “pay” for Khashoggi’s murder, describing Ryad as a “pariah”.
The White House has repeated, notably earlier this month, that Joe Biden’s opinion has not changed.
A senior US representative, speaking on condition of anonymity, said on Tuesday that if Joe Biden “determines that it is in his interest to engage with any leader, and if that engagement can lead to results, then that is what he will do”.
As an example of the need for dialogue with Riyadh to contribute to peace and security in the Middle East, this representative cited the role of Mohammed bin Salman in extending the truce in Yemen concluded under the aegis of the UN. A Saudi-led coalition has been intervening militarily in the country since 2015 against the Iran-aligned Houthis.
Joe Biden’s visit to Riyadh, scheduled for July 15-16, comes as OPEC+ countries, including Saudi Arabia, have agreed to boost oil production to compensate for the loss of Russian crude following the Western sanctions against Russia for invading Ukraine and tackling soaring prices at the pump.
According to three diplomats, the United States also wants to further isolate Russia, urging the Gulf countries to publicly condemn Moscow for the war in Ukraine. The Gulf countries have so far maintained what they say is a neutral stance, but some Western diplomats see this as implicit support for Russia.
Before going to Saudi Arabia, Joe Biden will travel to Israel on July 13 and 14, where he will highlight the United States’ commitment to the Jewish state, including billions of dollars in military support, said the high American representative. The White House chief will also hold a virtual summit with Israeli, Indian and Emirati leaders.
Joe Biden will also travel to the West Bank to meet Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and other leaders there to reaffirm his commitment to a two-state solution between Israel and Palestine, the representative added.
(Reporting Jarrett Renshaw, with Doina Chiacu, Susan Heavey and Alexander Cornwell; French version Dina Kartit and Jean Terzian, editing by Kate Entringer and Nicolas Delame)