US Secretary of State Antony Blinken meets Saudi Crown prince MBS amidst its closeness with China

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken meets Saudi Crown prince MBS amidst its closeness with China

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Riyadh: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken met Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Wednesday. Blinken arrived in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday amid tensions over a range of issues in relations between the US and Saudi Arabia. This is his second visit to Saudi Arabia after becoming the Foreign Minister. According to the US State Department, Blinken and Prince MBS met on Wednesday morning. During this, the two leaders expressed their “shared commitment to advance stability, security and prosperity in West Asia and beyond”. Israel has also been discussed between the two leaders.

tour between collisions
“Secretary Blinken also emphasized that our bilateral relationship has been strengthened by progress on human rights issues,” according to the State Department. Saudi Arabia confirmed the meeting between the two leaders in a statement. However, no detailed information was given regarding the meeting. Under the leadership of Prince Mohammed, Saudi Arabia has been shown to take decisions in its own interest and ignore America’s stand on many occasions. Saudi Arabia has repeatedly clashed with US President Joe Biden over Saudi Arabia’s willingness to supply crude oil to global markets, partner with Russia in ‘OPEC+’ and ease tensions with Iran with China’s help. Used to be.

discussion on israel
In June last year itself, US President Joe Biden had also visited Saudi Arabia. Biden took a tough stance against Saudi Arabia over the 2018 murder of ‘Washington Post’ journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Prior to Secretary of State Blinken, Biden’s National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan also traveled to Saudi Arabia and met Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Blinken and MBS also discussed the possibility of Saudi Arabia normalizing relations with Israel. According to an American official, the two have agreed to continue talks on the matter going forward. Saudi Arabia accepted about the meeting but refused to give any details.

China became a peace ambassador in the Middle East

Blinken’s visit to Saudi is taking place at a time when this country is getting closer to America’s enemy China. There was big news from the Middle East in March this year when China emerged as a peace ambassador between Iran and Saudi Arabia. Both the countries have restored diplomatic relations with the mediation of China. After this, the stature of China has increased considerably in this area. Now it has to be seen whether America, like China, is trying to become a peace ambassador between Israel and Saudi Arabia, it is successful or not.

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