Crown Prince Salman Hamad Al Khalifa’s third visit to the Trump White House came to the heels of his presidential trip to Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates in May.
President Trump has been welcomed by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman
The royal welcome to the Saudi Arabian president begins his trip to the Middle East.
- Bahrain has announced that it will purchase 12 Boeing Jets as part of its $17 billion US investment.
- Bahrain will also support the production of aluminum and liquefied natural gas.
WASHINGTON – The Bahrain Crown Prince has announced a $17 billion investment in the US, including purchasing dozens of Boeing Jets and dozens of GE engines.
“We are extremely pleased to announce the $17 billion worth of deals coming to the United States,” Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad al Khalifa told President Donald Trump in his oval office. “These are not fake transactions. They are real transactions.”
“We appreciate the investment,” Trump said.
Khalifa’s third visit to the White House with President Donald Trump came shortly after his presidential trip to Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates in May. The deal announced during that trip included a $1.2 trillion commitment from Qatar, a $600 million commitment from Saudi Arabia, and a contract to sell the country $142 billion in arms.
Khalifa said leaders will also discuss security issues, trade and investment. As Europe does, he was asked if he would send Patriot missiles to Ukraine, Khalifa said, “There are no current plans.”
“They’re great,” he said of the air defense missiles. “American technology is the best.”
In the airplane deal, Gulf Airlines is seeking to buy 12 Boeing aircraft worth around $7 billion, with an additional 600 million options. This transaction includes the sale of 40 GE engines. The White House said the deal would support 30,000 jobs.
Bahrain plans to purchase cutting-edge artificial intelligence chips, supporting aluminum production and liquefied natural gas production. The country also plans to invest in Oracle and Cisco servers and replace servers in China.
Bahrain has also completed a framework to launch discussions on the development of commercial nuclear capabilities. Secretary of State Marco Rubio hosted Foreign Minister Abdratif bin Rashid Al Zayani to sign the memo.
This is Khalifa’s third White House visit, after two during Trump’s first term. He visited in November 2017 to discuss defense and economic cooperation. He then visited in September 2019 and signed a contract for the Patriot missile defense system, along with trade negotiations.
Contribution: Reuters
