Trump arrives in Saudi Arabia amid much pomp

Nabih Bulos, Los Angeles Times on May 13, 2025

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RIYADH, Saudi Arabia — President Donald Trump arrived Tuesday for the first leg of his Middle East tour in the Saudi capital of Riyadh, where he was welcomed with a pomp-and-circumstance-filled ceremony and a high-powered lunch with top business leaders and government figures before giving a speech at an investment forum.

After Air Force One landed in Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport — escorted by Saudi Arabian F-15s — Trump emerged, pumped his fist in the air then stepped off the plane on to a lavender carpet, where Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman greeted him with a jovial, two-handed handshake — a contrast to the seemingly reluctant fist bump Salman once gave to his predecessor, President Joe Biden.

Trump and the prince then walked to an ornate hall where they engaged in a traditional coffee welcome ceremony, the first phase of a two-day visit suffused similar displays of pageantry.

Once done, Trump drove in the limousine known as "The Beast" flanked by a phalanx of horsemen carrying Saudi and American flags, then stood before an honor guard and a military band that played through "The Star-Spangled Banner" and the Saudi national anthem.

Joining Trump was a raft of officials, including U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, Special Envoy Steve Witkoff; along with dozens of business leaders.

Later, at a lavish lunch in Al-Yamamah Palace, Trump and the crown prince began an hourlong glad-handing session featuring Saudi royals, officials and military commanders.

Also on hand were elite business figures and star CEOs — all part of a 250-person guest list focusing on banking, tech, health, defense and AI. Los Angeles Times owner and biotech entrepreneur Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong also attended the lunch.

Yet it was business deals promised to be in the hundreds of billions of dollars that were the main focus of the day.

Trump employed his usual patter to the proceedings, touting American-made weapons as "the best military equipment in the world, by far."

"As you know, we have the biggest business leaders in the world here," Trump said. "They're going to walk away with a lot of checks for a lot of things that you're going to provide."

He added that his 24 hours in the country would yield an estimated 2 million job opportunities in the United States.

After the lunch, Trump and Salman signed a strategic economic partnership agreement, which, according to Saudi state media, included memoranda of understanding on energy, mining, mineral resources, defense and a cooperation agreement between NASA and the Saudi Space Agency.