Trump Concludes Tour with Record Deals
US President Donald Trump wraps up his Gulf tour on Friday in the United Arab Emirates, following stops in Saudi Arabia and Qatar, where he announced multibillion-dollar deals, alongside a diplomatic overture towards Syria and optimism regarding a nuclear agreement with Iran.
During his first foreign trip in his second term, Trump witnessed a “record” demand for purchasing Boeing planes worth over $200 billion, in addition to a massive arms deal with Saudi Arabia and the lifting of sanctions imposed on Syria for decades.
The warm reception was a highlight of Trump’s visits to the three countries, where he praised their leaders, stating that he and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman hold “a lot of affection” for each other— a stark contrast to the lukewarm Saudi-American relations that marked the beginning of former President Joe Biden’s term.
Trump is set to attend a business and trade meeting on Friday morning before touring the Abrahamic Family House on Saadiyat Island in Abu Dhabi, according to local media. This complex, opened in 2023, includes a mosque, a church, and the UAE’s first Jewish synagogue, aimed at promoting coexistence in the Islamic state.
The UAE was one of the Arab countries that normalized relations with Israel in 2020 under the Abraham Accords brokered by the US during Trump’s first term, which also included Morocco and Bahrain.
On Thursday, the American president held talks with his Emirati counterpart, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, following a tour of Sheikh Zayed Mosque, the largest in the country, renowned for its giant white pillars and its walls adorned with golden decorations.
Trillions of Dollars
During his stop in Doha, Trump praised what he called a “record deal” for Qatar Airways, valued at $200 billion for purchasing Boeing aircraft.
He also hinted from Qatar at the proximity of reaching an agreement on the Iranian nuclear program, which could avoid military action, an announcement that led to a drop in oil prices.
However, no progress was announced regarding the Gaza war during the visit to Qatar, which played a key mediating role in ceasefire talks. Trump reiterated in a speech in Doha that the US should “take” Gaza and turn it into a “freedom zone.”
The Saudi leg of the trip included promises made by Riyadh for investments worth $600 billion, including an arms deal that the White House claimed was “the largest in history.”
The White House also announced that Saudi company DataVolt would invest $20 billion in AI-related sites in the US, and tech companies, including Google, would invest in both countries.
In a first meeting of its kind in 25 years, Trump met with transitional Syrian President Ahmad al-Shara in Riyadh, announcing the lifting of sanctions on a war-torn nation; however, he demanded that Shara normalize relations with Israel in return.
Trump stated that his Gulf tour enabled the harvesting of “trillions of dollars”; however, the generosity of Gulf leaders also sparked controversy, particularly after Qatar offered Trump a luxury jet before his visit, which Democratic opponents have labeled as blatant corruption.
Artificial Intelligence
The English-language UAE newspaper The National reported that the US and the UAE are working on announcing a partnership in AI and technology during Trump’s visit.
The UAE seeks to lead in technology, particularly in AI, to diversify its economy, primarily reliant on oil.
However, these ambitions depend on access to advanced American technologies, including AI chips that were previously subject to strict export restrictions. Reports indicate that Sheikh Tahnoun bin Zayed, the UAE’s national security advisor and brother of the President, lobbied for such access during a visit to Washington in March.
Earlier this week, the Trump administration lifted several new restrictions that had been imposed by Biden, which were intended to take effect from May 15 regarding the export of semiconductors used in AI development, which primarily affected China.
The Emirati president announced that Abu Dhabi would invest $1.4 trillion in the US over the next decade.
Agreements worth a total of $200 billion have been signed, including an order worth $14.5 billion for Boeing and GE Aerospace, as well as participation from the government-owned ADNOC in a $60 billion project in the US, according to the White House.
