Throughout Nov. 18, U.S. President Donald Trump dangled all kinds of inducements in front of visiting Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s nose, but still couldn’t get him to announce that Riyadh had joined the Abraham Accords and normalized relations with Israel. During a White House dinner, Trump announced that he has formally designated Saudi Arabia as a major non-NATO ally, aiming to deepen military cooperation between the two nations, Axios reported. “I’m just telling you now for the first time, because I wanted to keep a little secret for tonight,” the President said, adding that the two signed a “historic strategic defense agreement” earlier in the day.
According to a White House fact sheet, Trump and the Prince, signed the U.S.-Saudi Strategic Defense Agreement (SDA), “a historic agreement that strengthens our more than 80-year defense partnership and fortifies deterrence across the Middle East.” Trump also approved a major defense sale package, including future F-35 deliveries, and an agreement for Saudi Arabia to purchase nearly 300 American tanks.
