Saudi-American relations to ‘reach ground-breaking levels,’ says SAPRAC chief

JEDDAH: Salman Al-Ansari, president of the Saudi American Public Relation Affairs Committee (SAPRAC), said US President Donald Trump’s visit to Saudi Arabia holds unprecedented strategic significance in strengthening bilateral ties, especially given that for the first time in history the Kingdom will be the first country visited by a sitting US president while on their duties abroad.
Al-Ansari told Arab News in an exclusive interview that for the US to afford any country this distinction constitutes a positive step in relations with one of its most trusted allies.
Trump’s visit also carries unique significance as it is not merely a visit to the Kingdom, but to the heart of the Arab and Muslim worlds, Al-Ansari said.
“It’s clear that the current US administration finds Saudi Arabia’s ability to unite the entire Arab and Muslim worlds against terrorism invaluable to America’s efforts to address the region’s challenges,” he said, adding that he expects US-Saudi trade to “reach ground-breaking levels.”
The Kingdom is poised to “bring in the latest in US technology and know how, allowing American companies to help Saudi Arabia with its ambitious infrastructure plans,” he said.
“The Kingdom will also massively increase its investments in the US, which may create upwards of 1 million American jobs. The sky is the limit, as US-Saudi relations are on the cusp of moving into a new era of mutual security, stability and economic prosperity.”