Biden heading next month to Saudi Arabia, Israel and the West Bank

Shafaq News/ US President Biden is planning an expansive trip to the Middle East next month, including a controversial meeting with Saudi Arabia’s crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, a much-debated move that signals a striking relaxation in Biden’s posture toward the Saudis.

During a four-day trip — from July 13 to 16 — Biden is planning to visit Israel, the West Bank and Saudi Arabia, according to White House officials who for the first time formally confirmed an itinerary that has been debated for weeks within the administration.

It will mark Biden’s first trip to Israel as president and will come nearly 50 years after he first visited the country as a young senator. He also plans to meet with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, a meeting likely to occur in Bethlehem during a stop in the West Bank.

The trip reflects Biden’s attempt to address some of the thorniest challenges in the region: pressure to contain Iran’s nuclear ambitions, a need for more oil that could help lower soaring gas prices, efforts to revive peace talks between Israelis and Palestinians, and a push to end the war in Yemen.

But the trip will test Biden’s stated commitment to human rights, especially his stated intention to make Saudi Arabia a “pariah.”

The historic alliance between the United States and Saudi Arabia ruptured following the 2018 killing of Jamal Khashoggi, a Washington Post columnist and outspoken critic of the Saudi government. American intelligence has concluded that Mohammed, the country’s de facto ruler, ordered the killing of the journalist, which occurred inside the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul.

“I would make it very clear we were … going to, in fact, make them pay the price, and make them, in fact, the pariah that they are,” Biden said of Saudi Arabia during a Democratic presidential primary debate in 2019.

He said at the time that “there’s very little social redeeming value in the present government in Saudi Arabia.”

Whether Biden should visit the crown prince has been hotly debated within the administration, and as recently as a few days ago, the president himself seemed unsure if he would ultimately go.

“Not yet,” Biden said Saturday, when asked if he had decided.

But some in the White House view such a trip as necessary at a time when the administration is grappling with rising energy prices and inflation, creating economic pressures that make it far more difficult to isolate Saudi Arabia.

When he was pressed recently about his vow to make the country a “pariah,” Biden responded by suggesting he was driven by a desire to promote Middle East peace as well as bring down gas prices for Americans. “I’m not going to change my view on human rights, but as president of the United States, my job is to bring peace,” Biden said. “And that’s what I’m going to try to do.”

A senior administration official said Biden was expected to see the crown prince during the trip. The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity under the ground rules of a call to discuss the plans, did not address whether Biden planned to raise Khashoggi’s killing directly but said that human rights would be on the agenda.

“Look, human rights is always a part of the conversation at our foreign engagement,” the official said. “I think it's what makes the United States unique. I think it's what makes our administration unique.”

From Israel, Biden will travel to Jiddah, Saudi Arabia. The visit, White House officials said, comes at the invitation of King Salman.

The topics will include new infrastructure and climate initiatives, ensuring global energy and food security, and deterring threats from Iran.

“The President appreciates King Salman’s leadership and his invitation,” Jean-Pierre said in the statement. “He looks forward to this important visit to Saudi Arabia, which has been a strategic partner of the United States for nearly eight decades.”