U.S. President Donald Trump ended a significant four-day tour of the Middle East, departing from the United Arab Emirates after finalizing several important economic and defense agreements. Source image: Al Jazeera
(The Post News)- United States President Donald Trump concluded a four day, high pressure Middle Eastern tour by departing the United Arab Emirates after clinching a string of massive economic and defense deals and dropping cryptic hints about his intentions to manipulate current global conflicts.
The trip, which followed him to Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE, underscored Trump’s attempts to rebuild American leadership across economic, military, and diplomatic domains. On a day filled with symbolism and messaging, Trump met with Emirati leaders, joined a business roundtable in Abu Dhabi, and toured the Abrahamic Family House — a multi-faith complex that houses a mosque, a synagogue, and a church, symbols of interfaith coexistence.
“This is just the beginning,” Trump said as he boarded his plane. “Our Gulf partnerships are more powerful than they ever were before, and the investments coming into the United States will create millions of jobs.”
Trump’s visit to the region yielded him more than $10 trillion in deals collectively, and among them is a historic AI deal with the UAE, whereby the country in the Gulf will commit $1.4 trillion over 10 years to develop artificial intelligence infrastructure in America.
“This will remake the future,” Trump said at a news conference with UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. “The UAE has been visionary and strong, and our relationship will make the world different in terms of innovation.”
Saudi Arabia committed a $600 billion investment package for American infrastructure, technology, and renewable energy, while Qatar signed a $42 billion defense procurement deal and agreed to purchase up to 210 Boeing planes.
While as much as the economic push was on everyone’s lips, diplomacy hung in the air during the visit. Trump repeated his desire to get involved in person in the Russia-Ukraine conflict, further stating he plans to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin “as soon as we can arrange it.”
Talks between Russian and Ukrainian officials continued Friday in Istanbul — their first face-to-face encounter in over three years — but Putin and Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky did not attend. Trump, who considered making a surprise trip to Turkey, gave it a pass, declaring, “Nothing is going to happen until I sit down with Putin.”
A Turkish government official to Reuters confirmed that a meeting between Turkish, U.S., and Ukrainian delegations had in fact taken place on the margins of the broader peace negotiations.
During his visit to Qatar, Trump stated that the U.S. was nearing a new nuclear deal with Iran, a potential diplomatic evolution. He further stated that he would soon move to undo years-long sanctions on Syria, an action guaranteed to provoke heat in Washington and beyond.
Political analysts say that Trump’s tour is a sign of a makeover in U.S. foreign policy with a heavy emphasis on business diplomacy and geopolitical pragmatism.
“The transactions done on this trip are not just economic — they represent a strategic rebalancing in the region,” said Middle East expert Rana Al-Husseini. “Trump is laying the foundation for a future in which the Gulf states will be at the forefront of global tech, defense, and political stability.”
Before departing, Trump summed up the sentiment of the tour: “We’ve changed the game. The world is watching.”
He is expected to return to Washington late Friday, though he left open the possibility of additional stops, saying, “It’s almost destination unknown — calls are coming in.”
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