Sawt Falasteen - Trump boasts Saudi business deals as he basks in royal welcome

The Saudi hosts escorted Air Force One into the kingdom with fighter jets before bringing out long-stretching guards of honour and sending flag-waving horseback cavalry to accompany Trump's motorcade to the palace.

Under imposing chandeliers, Trump welcomed a promise by Saudi Arabia's de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, for $600 billion in investment and quipped that it should be $1 trillion.

"We have the biggest business leaders in the world here today and they're going to walk away with a lot of cheques," Trump told the prince.

For "the United States, it's probably two million jobs that we're talking about," Trump said.

With cameras rolling, a lengthy procession of Saudi royalty and business figures waited their turn to shake hands with Trump and the crown prince, including Elon Musk, the world's richest person and close advisor to Trump who made a rare appearance in a suit.

Trump will address an investment forum in Riyadh where specifics of deals are expected to be announced.

He will head later in the week head to Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, fellow oil-rich Arab monarchies with long-standing ties to the United States.

In choosing the Gulf for his first major tour, the 78-year-old billionaire is again bypassing traditional presidential stops in Western allies, some of which have been unnerved by his norms-shattering diplomacy.

Eight years ago Trump also chose Saudi Arabia for his first overseas trip -- when he posed with a glowing orb and participated in a sword dance.

Trump's embrace of the Saudis contrasts with a more hesitant initial approach by former president Joe Biden, who had vowed to punish the crown prince after US intelligence found that he ordered the murder of dissident Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018.

Trump reminisced with the 39-year-old crown prince of their first meeting, saying he was "so impressed with this young guy who was very wise beyond his years".

- Saudis seek image change -

Since Khashoggi's gruesome killing, Saudi Arabia has worked aggressively to change its image, from easing restrictions on women to pursuing initiatives in new areas such as artificial intelligence.

Saudi Arabia has also increasingly exercised diplomatic clout, serving as a venue for the United States to pursue talks with Ukraine and Russia.

Qatar and the United Arab Emirates have also sought outsized international roles, with the Qataris serving as a mediator along with the United States and Egypt in the Israel-Hamas conflict.

Jon Alterman, senior vice president at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said that for Trump, the Gulf "is his happy place".

"His hosts will be generous and hospitable. They'll be keen to make deals. They'll flatter him and not criticise him. And they'll treat his family members as past and future business partners," he said.

According to a Saudi official close to the defence ministry, Riyadh will push for securing the latest US F-35 fighter jets along with state-of-the-art air defence systems worth billions of dollars.

"We will condition that the deliveries take place during Trump's term," the source told AFP.

- Lavish plane -

Not to be outdone, Qatar has offered a luxury Boeing aircraft for Trump to refurbish as Air Force One and then use personally after he leaves the White House.

Trump's Democratic rivals have called the gift blatant corruption. Trump has hit back that it was "very public and transparent" and said: "I would never be one to turn down that kind of an offer."

An ultimate prize, pushed both by Trump and Biden, has been to persuade Saudi Arabia, home of Islam's holiest sites, to take the landmark step of recognising Israel.

But Israel normalisation is not likely to feature high on the agenda on Trump's trip, with Riyadh insisting a Palestinian state must be established first.

Israel has cut off all food and other supplies to Gaza for more than two months as it pursues a new offensive against Hamas militants.

The United States, which has quietly been frustrated with its ally, negotiated directly with Hamas to secure the release of a hostage with US citizenship, Edan Alexander, to whom Trump spoke by telephone Tuesday.

Iran will likely feature prominently in the talks in the Gaza, following the Trump administration's fourth round of nuclear negotiations with Tehran at the weekend.

Both sides have voiced hope but the United States on Monday imposed fresh sanctions targeting Iran's suspect nuclear programme.

Z.Ramadan--SF-PST