Saudi Arabia is set to announce next week during Trump’s trip there that they plan to invest $40 billion in US infrastructure. They say they are willing to invest the money because it is a safe place to invest money with assurances of making a profit. This is keeping with President Trump’s plan to spend $1 trillion to improve infrastructure, with most of the money coming from the private sector rather than raising taxes.
It also has to do with resetting their relationship with the United States. The Saudis were left out in the cold as Obama favored Iran over our longtime ally.
Saudi Arabia plans to make a $40 billion investment in one of President Donald Trump’s pet projects, U.S. infrastructure development, according a media report.
The announcement may coincide with Trump’s visit to the kingdom next week, sources familiar with the matter told Bloomberg News.
Following Trump’s meeting with the influential Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, also in March, the White House issued a statement saying the president supports developing a “United States-Saudi program undertaken by joint U.S.-Saudi working groups” that would invest in energy, industry, infrastructure and technology. The program would potentially be worth $200 billion in direct and indirect investment in the next four years, the White House said.
Trump promised to launch a $1 billion infrastructure spending plan, which he says would largely be funded by private investment.
This would help fulfill Trump’s promise to improve infrastructure.
Trump could also use the their desire to make the investment as an opportunity to encourage relations, while also pushing human rights and cooperation against ISIS to push them further than other administrations have previously.
This will be a fascinating visit as liberals are stunned that he is going to a Muslim country, given such things as Trump’s travel ban which they erroneously argue is anti-Muslim.