Biden was speaking at the GCC +3 summit in Jeddah, in the presence of Oman, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Egypt, Iraq and Jordan.
We will not back down and leave a vacuum to be filled by China, Russia or Iran. The US President stressed the principles of his strategy for the region, with a focus on regional cooperation to confront threats.
Today, the American head of state, along with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, also admitted that many countries make mistakes, but warned that only those who learn from them can become “stronger.”
“No country is always right, not even most of the time, not even the United States. But our people are our strength. Only countries that have the confidence to learn from their mistakes grow stronger.”
The President of the United States arrived in Saudi Arabia, Friday, on a visit aimed at repairing the relationship with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and securing Saudi support to reduce oil prices.
US intelligence accuses bin Salman of approving the operation that killed Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018.
Biden himself had condemned the killing of Khashoggi, who was dismembered in the Saudi embassy in Turkey for the Saudi crown prince.
The US president will also meet with Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz.
Biden said during the NATO summit in Madrid at the end of June that a meeting was not scheduled with the king and the crown prince, but the White House said otherwise on the eve of the president’s departure to the Middle East.
According to sources cited by international agencies, advisers had to persuade Biden to consider improving relations between the United States and Saudi Arabia, which would mean putting the Khashoggi assassination behind him.
This is the first time that Joe Biden has visited the Middle East since he became president of the United States and arrives in Jeddah after passing through Israel and the West Bank.
In Saudi Arabia, Biden is participating in a summit of the heads of the Gulf Cooperation Council, as well as from Egypt, Jordan and Iraq.
The discussion will include increasing oil production, ceasefire in Yemen, and limiting Iran’s influence in the Middle East and China in the global scenario.
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