Trump Defends Saudi's MBS With Billions in Tech, Defense Deals on the Table
November 18, 2025
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8:26Now PlayingTrump Defends Saudi's MBS With Billions in Tech, Defense Deals on the Table
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as posted by the channelJane Harman, former ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee, said that in addition to the sale of F-35 fighter jets there may be an appetite to do other defense deals with Saudi Arabia, as long as the US can keep the technology from falling into China's hands.
In contrast, Trump told reporters Tuesday that MBS had done an “incredible” job on human rights.
The two leaders said they expected talks around the Crown Prince’s visit to Washington to focus on expanding Saudi Arabia’s investment in the US to as much as $1 trillion from a purported $600 billion previously. Trump said the US was likely to approve a defense agreement with Riyadh — without giving further detail — and a civil nuclear deal.
He reiterated that Washington would sell F-35 fighters to Saudi Arabia, adding that Israel, which had opposed the move, would “be happy.”
US President Donald Trump said Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman “knew nothing about” the murder of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi, as the pair met to announce a deepening of economic ties at the White House.
“A lot of people didn’t like that gentleman that you’re talking about,” Trump said when asked about Khashoggi alongside the Saudi prince in the Oval Office. “Whether you like him or didn’t like him, things happen, but he knew nothing about it, and we can leave it at that.”
The comments represent a sweeping official rehabilitation for MBS, as Saudi Arabia’s de facto leader is known, after a US intelligence report in 2021 implicated the 40-year-old royal in the death of Khashoggi, who was killed in a Saudi consulate in Turkey seven years ago. That finding soured relations between the oil-rich kingdom and many longstanding Western allies — including Trump’s predecessor, Joe Biden.
In contrast, Trump told reporters Tuesday that MBS had done an “incredible” job on human rights.
The two leaders said they expected talks around the Crown Prince’s visit to Washington to focus on expanding Saudi Arabia’s investment in the US to as much as $1 trillion from a purported $600 billion previously. Trump said the US was likely to approve a defense agreement with Riyadh — without giving further detail — and a civil nuclear deal.
He reiterated that Washington would sell F-35 fighters to Saudi Arabia, adding that Israel, which had opposed the move, would “be happy.”
Israel, the chief US ally in the Middle East, is the only state in the region that has the Lockheed Martin Corp.-made advanced military jets and had wanted to keep that monopoly. However, Trump’s say-so is just an initial step in what’s likely to require years of negotiations, with Washington wary about the technology being shared elsewhere, particularly with China.
Trump also said the leaders expected to agree on the sale of some advanced artificial intelligence chips to Saudi Arabia, though negotiations are ongoing.
The US leader said he and MBS had discussed the possibility of Saudi Arabia establishing formal diplomatic ties with Israel as part of the Abraham Accords, though the Crown Prince indicated he was interested in work toward establishing a Palestinian state.
The meeting between Trump and MBS cements a burgeoning relationship that the kingdom sees as advancing peace and stability in the Middle East. The royal was welcomed with the pomp and circumstance usually reserved for monarchs and heads of state, including a flyover by six fighter planes and a procession of at least a dozen horses.
“Saudi Arabia is a rising economic power among the G-20 and a major investment partner of the US,” Saudi commentator Abdulrahman al-Rashed, who is close to the royal court, wrote ahead of the visit. “It’s not an exaggeration to say that the success of Saudi-American relations will have a big impact on the region’s stability and prosperity.”
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