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On the first stop of his inaugural foreign trip, President Donald Trump signed his name Saturday to a nearly $110 billion arms deal with Saudi Arabia effective immediately \u2014 plus another $350 billion over the next 10 years.<\/p>\n
The White House trumpeted the agreement as a \u201csignificant expansion\u201d of the two nation\u2019s \u201csecurity relationship\u201d that includes promises for future defense capabilities to support Saudi Arabia\u2019s defense needs.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat was a tremendous day. Tremendous investments in the United States,\u201d Trump, following a day of pageantry upon his arrival, said during a meeting with Saudi Arabia\u2019s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Nayef. \u201cHundreds of billions of dollars of investments into the United States and jobs, jobs, jobs.\u201d<\/p>\n
Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Saudi Arabian Minister of Foreign Affairs Adel bin Ahmed Al-Jubeir also touted the agreement while briefing reporters Saturday, stressing the need for economic security and joint counterterrorism efforts.<\/p>\n
Tillerson previewed \u201congoing engagement and dialogue\u201d as well as regular meetings to review how the deal\u2019s tenets will progress. Saturday\u2019s announcement, Tillerson added, shows a \u201cstrong message to our common enemies.\u201d<\/p>\n
Among those that the U.S.-Saudi military sales agreement is meant to send a signal to: Iran. Asked if he would ever call Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif, Tillerson said he\u2019s never \u201cshut off the phone\u201d and suggested an openness to dialogue \u2014 at least in the future.<\/p>\n
\u201cI have no plans to call my counterpart in Iran, though in all likelihood we will talk at the right time,\u201d Tillerson said.<\/p>\n
A White House official said the arms deal package demonstrates \u201cthe United States\u2019 commitment to our partnership with Saudi Arabia and our Gulf partners, while also expanding opportunities for American companies in the region, and supporting tens of thousands of new jobs in the U.S. defense industrial base.\u201d<\/p>\n
The deal \u2014 which was already anticipated as a tangible outcome of the trip \u2014 also includes a \u201cletter of intent\u201d to assemble 150 Lockheed Martin Blackhawk helicopters to the tune of $6 billion.<\/p>\n
In addition, eight letters of acceptance and a joint vision statement were released, said White House Principle Deputy Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders.<\/p>\n
According to the State Department, the sales fall into five broad categories, including border security and counterterrorism; air force modernization; air and missile defense; maritime and coastal security; and cybersecurity and communications upgrades.<\/p>\n
Jared Kushner, the president\u2019s son-in-law and senior adviser in the administration, reportedly took a hands-on approach early on in the arms deal negotiations, calling Lockheed Martin CEO Marillyn Hewson to see if anything could be done about the price of a sophisticated radar system. She told him she\u2019d look into it, according to a New York Times account.<\/p>\n
The arms deal, however, may receive pushback from human rights organizations who have previously called out Saudi Arabia for actions taken in Yemen that they say violate human rights. These new weapons beg questions about how Saudi Arabia will use the equipment going forward.<\/p>\n
The arms announcement also comes amid new private sector agreements after U.S. and Saudi Arabian companies gathered Tuesday for a Saudi-U.S. CEO Forum.<\/p>\n
A statement released by the 2017 Riyahd Summit applauded other agreements with GE and Dow Chemical as achieving \u201cthe goal of creating jobs and driving economic diversification\u201d and providing jobs in the country, \u201ccementing partnerships for generations to come.\u201d<\/p>\n
GE, the U.S. technology and engineering giant, also said Saturday it had signed $15 billion worth of business deals with Saudi Arabia.<\/p>\n
Tillerson praised the multibillion-dollar \u201cdirect investment\u201d move, predicting it will \u201cresult in literally hundreds of thousands of American jobs.\u201d<\/p>\n
President Trump arrived in the kingdom on Saturday morning, greeted by Saudi King Salman on a red-carpeted tarmac.<\/p>\n
The trip, which marks Trump\u2019s first overseas venture since becoming president, comes as the leader of the free world faces political blowback at home for his firing of former FBI Director James Comey and Washington reels from the appointment of a special counsel by the Department of Justice to investigate allegations of Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election.<\/p>\n
Before departing on his trip, Trump said he believes the special counsel decision \u201churts our country terribly because it shows we\u2019re a divided, mixed-up, not-unified country.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Source: nbcnews<\/p>\n
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