Former President Donald Trump recently completed a four-day tour across the Gulf region, visiting Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). This high-profile visit highlighted the petrostates’ lavish wealth and showcased significant economic partnerships between the United States and these nations.
While abroad, Trump made the outlandish claim that he had locked in more than $2 trillion worth of deals for the U.S. economy. The grantee visit was indeed a remarkable experience. Known the world over for their wealth and opulence, the Gulf nations rolled out the red carpet for Trump, greeting him with military escorts of fighter jets and a customary 21-gun salute.
In Saudi Arabia, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman followed up with a promise to invest $600 billion worth of U.S.-Saudi partnerships. This ambitious pledge is no small matter and marks a significant move in bilateral relations. Experts are doubtful about its feasibility given the new oil price paradigm. Tim Callen noted, “It’s going to be very hard for Saudi to come up with that sort of money in the current oil price environment.”
Trump didn’t just stop at his big Saudi deals, though—he announced $1.2 trillion in deals with Qatar, too. One of the biggest stories was Qatar Airways’ order for as many as 210 new passenger jets from Boeing. This gigantic agreement is worth a staggering $96 billion. According to Qatar, this acquisition would further enhance Qatar’s prominence in the global aviation industry while improving bilateral trade relations with the United States.
At the same time, the UAE is looking to position itself as a global center of excellence for artificial intelligence (AI). During Trump’s visit, an agreement was signed to construct the world’s largest AI campus outside the U.S. Saudi Arabia and the UAE are currently in a headlong competition to construct enormous new, advanced AI data centers. This competition reflects a larger regional impetus towards technological innovation.
“The proof with all of these [new] deals will be in the pudding,” Tim Callen remarked regarding the ambitious financial commitments made during the trip.
The UAE recently committed to investing a whopping $1.4 trillion in the U.S. over the next 10 years. This commitment will deepen the economic relationship between the two nations even more. Just last month, Saudi oil giant Aramco announced 34 US-Saudi agreements. Those deals, worth as much as $90 billion, are evidence of the robust commercial engagement.
His tour was joined by a veritable who’s who of tech establishment luminaries. Among those rolled out were Sam Altman, Jensen Huang, and Elon Musk. Their presence highlights the intersection of technology and international relations, particularly as Gulf nations seek to diversify their economies away from oil dependency.
On defense pacts Trump bragged about a $142 billion arms deal as the biggest ever brokered by the White House. This agreement further highlights the military strategic partnership that remains at the core of U.S.-Gulf relations.
Reflecting on the significance of his trip, Trump stated, “That was a great four days, historic four days.” He further added, “The jobs and money coming into our countries, there has never been anything like it.” As he returned home, he expressed a mix of pride and expectation: “I’ll be sitting home, who the hell knows where I’ll be, and I’ll say, ‘I did that.’”
Bader Al Saif commented on the historical context of technological advancements: “We have seen that the technological turn in the 90s came from the U.S. anyway.” Few on the ground in the region will tell you that they don’t feel this optimism boiling over. They hope to build on that success by working with American manufacturers.