“Historic agreements” for 600 billion, from weaponry (record agreement of 142 billion) toIa (20 billion), fromhigh tech atthe energy, from infrastructure to the Health. It's still: lifting sanctions on Syria, pressing on theIran for an agreement on the nuclear and Israel for a truce in Gaza, where "people deserve a better future". The "Donald of Arabia", as some have already dubbed Donald Trump on the occasion of his first trip abroad during his second term as head of the USA, mixes the signing of mind-blowing deals with his unpredictable diplomatic "strategy" in his debut stage in Riad. A trip marred by the decision to accept – as a gift – an ultra-luxury Boeing from Qatar and to exclude news agencies from Air Force One, the presidential plane.
Trump: Agreements at bin Salman's court in Riyadh
The tycoon was welcomed with all honours by the crown prince of Saudi Arabia Mohamed bin Salman among the marbles and golds of the sumptuous royal palace. “We like each other very much,” Trump said in an exchange of mutual praise, accompanied by a court of CEOs led by Elon Musk and including among others Mark Zuckerberg, Sam altman, Larry Fink, John Elkann. While the investments were somewhat expected, there was much anticipation for the more political part of his speech at the Saudi-US Investment Forum, in front of an audience of wealthy sheiks at the King Abdul Aziz International Conference Center. His speech laid the foundation for a (difficult) turning point in the Middle East where, he said, “after so many decades of conflict, it is finally within our reach to achieve the future that generations before us could only dream of: a land of peace, security, harmony, opportunity, innovation and success.”
Trump: The Turning Point on Syria and the Message to Israel
The coup de théâtre, it was mentioned, was the announcement of the turning point on Syria, with the lifting of sanctions, the restoration of relations between the two countries and the opening of credit to the new government of President Ahmed Hussein al-Sharaa (al Jolani), who will meet on Wednesday in Riyadh. "In Syria, which has known so much misery and death, there is a new government in which we must all hope that it will be able to stabilize the country and maintain peace," Trump explained to applause, who made the decision after speaking with bin Salman and the Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Opening also on Lebanon, where Trump said he was ready to help "build a future of economic development and peace with its neighbors." Carrot and stick instead for theIran.
A message is also addressed to the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (with which the chill descended), on the day he announced that the Israeli army will soon enter the Strip "with full force". "The people of Gaza deserve a better future," he declared, adding that it is his "fervent wish" that theSaudi Arabia “soon join the Abraham Accords.” For this reason, Trump tomorrow, in the second leg of his trip to Qatar, could present his plan to end the conflict in the Strip, then “ordering” Netanyahu to respect it, he writes Haaretz
Trump, who was in Riyadh: from Musk to Zuckerberg (but also Elkann)
From Elon Musk at number one in Meta, Mark Zuckerberg, passing through the CEOs of Amazon, Nvidia, OpenAI e Boeing. In Riyadh, together with Trump, the CEO of Corporate America, including the president of Stellantis John Elkann. For them, the meeting is an opportunity to make agreements with the rich Saudis but also to lobby onentourage of the American president on tariffs.
Despite the clearing with China, uncertainty over tariffs remains. And for the number one leaders of large American companies, having the opportunity to interact directly with Trump's team, away from the spotlight of Washington, is unmissable.
In Riyadh, many of the CEOs have lunch with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, meet Saudi bigwigs to do business and participate in the Saudi-US Investment Forum, dubbed the 'Witch of the Desert' for the occasion. Their presence is praised by Trump who, during his visit, aims to cash in 1.000 billion dollars of Saudi investments. The tycoon praised them from the forum stage and took a swipe at the absent CEO of Apple, Tim Cook. “There isn't, but Nvidia there is,” he said praising the number one of the semiconductor giant Jensen Huang. Nvidia itself has signed an important partnership with Human, the Saudi sovereign wealth fund's artificial intelligence startup. Under the deal, Nvidia will ship 18.000 of its latest-generation chips to it for use in its data centers in Saudi Arabia.
Sempre Humain is the protagonist together with Amazon Web Services of an investment of more than five billion dollars in AI in Saudi Arabia. Riyadh was the occasion for Musk to announce Saudi approval of the use of his Starlink for air and sea transport. Taking off his role as head of the Department for Government Efficiency, from the stage of the Forum Musk assured that he will play a central role in the Saudi technological turnaround and spoke about all his companies, from Boring company which builds tunnels and infrastructures to Tesla robots. “I showed them to Mohammed Bin Salman and Trump. There was one who even made the Trump dance“Trump's dance, he said smiling. Even his enemy Sam Altman of OpenAI was present in Saudi Arabia, one of the world's largest investors in artificial intelligence.