Friday, Apr 26, 2024 | Last Update : 04:33 AM IST
Trump’s Mideast trip to forge new Muslim ties
The planning for the visit to Saudi Arabia began soon after the November election results came.
Washington: President Donald Trump’s five- nation trip to Europe and the Middle East this month is aimed at reversing US’ disengagement with the world, establishing a new partnership with Muslim leaders and finding a long-term solution to extremism, a top administration official has said.
Mr Trump is to visit Saudi Arabia, Israel, the Vatican, Brussels and Italy on his first overseas trip as President later this month. The dates have not been announced yet.
The planning for the visit to Saudi Arabia began soon after the November election results came and Riyadh approached then president-elect Mr Trump with the message that they wanted to start a new relationship with the United States.
This would be probably for the first time that a US President would make his first overseas trip to Saudi Arabia. The official said that these new partnerships can deliver improved security and prosperity, better lives for children across all major religions and across the people of the world.
“I think what the president has demonstrated already, and will be able to demonstrate even further on this trip, is that ‘America First’ is fully compatible with American leadership in the world,” the official said on condition of anonymity.
“Circumstances in the Middle East, that have bled over, as we all know, into Europe and globally, associated with radical, Islamist terrorist groups - Salafi-jihadist groups that are victimising so many in the region and beyond, as well as the problems associated with these terrorists groups, combined with Iran’s subversive and malign behaviour across the region, have aligned interests in a way that could lead to new partnerships enabled by American leadership,” he said.
“The different objectives he laid out for us was, one, is to come up with a long-term fix for radicalisation. How do you fight the ideological battle for the long term? Two is, how do we stop funding for terror and terror-related organisations and organisations that are radicalising youth?” he said.
