President Donald Trump used the first major foreign trip of his second term to outline a vision for restoring global stability that is grounded in pragmatism and self-interest rather than values, holding out U.S. ties to wealthy Gulf countries as a model for America’s longtime foes.
His four-day swing through Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, which ends Friday, put a spotlight on Trump’s transactional approach to foreign affairs as he was feted by autocratic rulers with a trio of lavish state visits where there was heavy emphasis on economic and security partnerships.
His trip played out against the backdrop of stubborn global conflicts, including Gaza and Ukraine, that showed the limits of his influence. But Trump insisted he was turning the page on American “interventionalism” in the region as he moved to recognize the new government in Syria for the first time and prodded Iran to engage on nuclear talks before it’s too late.
Some takeaways from Trump’s travels:
Trump marveled at Gulf state opulence but held his tongue on human rights
Presidential trips to the Middle East usually feature at least some public calls for authoritarian governments to improve their human rights efforts. Not this one, as Trump celebrated his business deals with Gulf royals and admired their wealth.
Trump toured the marble and gilded palaces of Gulf rulers and deemed them “perfecto” and “very hard to buy.” He praised the “gleaming marvels” of the skyline in Saudi Arabia. And he groused about the “much less impressive” Air Force One.
In Trump’s remarks at a VIP business conference in Riyadh, he went out of his way to distance himself from the actions of past administrations, the days when he said American officials would fly in “in beautiful planes, giving you lectures on how to live and how to govern your own affairs.”
Rights advocates took that as a pledge of nonintervention, swearing off some of the pressure past U.S. presidents have brought to bear on partners to varying degrees to ease up on detentions, suppression of critics and other issues.
Israeli strikes kill at least 64 people in Gaza as Trump wraps up his Middle East visit
“It’s absolute support for absolute monarchy,” said Saudi exile Abdullah Alaoudh. His father, a Saudi cleric with a wide following there, is imprisoned in the kingdom.
Some rights advocates said Trump officials gave them private assurances the administration was working on behalf of detained Americans and rights advocates. Tommy Pigott, a deputy spokesman at the State Department, declined to say whether Trump raised those or other rights issues in discussions with Gulf royals.
Thwarted by Putin
While Trump was in the Mideast, Vladimir Putin opted to skip direct peace talks with Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy despite the U.S. president’s strong calls for them to meet face to face.
Trump has been pushing Putin and Zelenskyy to move with greater haste to end Russia’s grinding war in Ukraine.
But after it became clear Putin wouldn’t be attending talks in Turkey this week and would instead be sending underlings to Istanbul, an annoyed Trump insisted he knew all along that it was highly likely Putin would be a no-show.
“I don’t believe anything’s going to happen whether you like it or not, until he and I get together,” Trump said. “But we’re going to have to get it solved because too many people are dying.”
As he wrapped up his visit on Friday, Trump said the face-to-face would happen “as soon as we can set it up.”
Trump was scheduled to fly back to Washington on Friday, but tried to keep people guessing until the end. He teased late Thursday that he would be heading to a “destination unknown” — “probably” Washington, he added. His opaque language stoked speculation that he might make a drop-by to Turkey.
But on Friday morning, he told reporters he needed to get back to Washington. His daughter Tiffany had her first child while the president has been away.
“I would actually leave here and go,” Trump said. “I do want to see my beautiful grandson.”
On Syria sanctions, Trump takes a leap of faith
Just two months ago, the Trump administration wasn’t sold on Syria’s interim government led by Ahmad al-Sharaa, the onetime al-Qaida-affiliated insurgent. They worried the Syrian president didn’t have the legitimacy to govern the country’s ethnically diverse population.
Clashes broke out in early March, killing hundreds and targeting many more members of the Alawite religious minority to which the ousted Syrian leader Basher Assad belongs.
The moment gave the Trump White House pause about easing sanctions on Syria. But Trump signaled Monday that he was having a change of heart and was moving toward lifting the Syria sanctions. A day later, he announced the move during an address to Gulf leaders.
Trump then took it another step by agreeing to meet al-Sharaa.
Trump said he was impressed with al-Sharaa, who not that long ago had a $10 million U.S. bounty on his head. The president called him a “young, attractive guy” with a “very strong past.”
Trump said it was recommendations from Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman that nudged him to take a chance on al-Sharra.
“President Erdogan called me and said: ‘Is there any way you could do that? Because if you don’t do that, they don’t have a chance,’” Trump said. “So, I did it.”