NBC:
The United States and Saudi Arabia will announce Tuesday that President Joe Biden will visit the Gulf state for bilateral talks next month and meet with the country’s de facto leader, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, three sources with knowledge of the planning told NBC News.
The sources said the two-day trip is scheduled for July 15-16.
The first day will be for bilateral talks, including with the crown prince, the sources said. On the second day, Biden is expected to meet with the Gulf Cooperation Council, which consists of leaders from Gulf nations.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The forthcoming announcement comes about 10 days after a planned trip to Israel and Saudi Arabia in late June was pushed back, several sources told NBC News at the time.
When Biden was asked last week about a possible trip to Riyadh, he told NBC News that if he went he would also discuss improving Saudi relations with Israel. However, the Saudis are not yet prepared to recognize Israel as have other Arab countries, according to the three sources with knowledge of the planning.
