Trump and bin Salman discuss broader issues than trade.
Referring to the deal to sell American fighter jets to Saudi Arabia, the American website Axios quoted two Israeli officials as saying: Israel has no objection to selling these fighter jets to Saudi Arabia, but it wants the US to use it as a condition for normalization with Tel Aviv.
Trump is expected to host Mohammed bin Salman on Tuesday. The F-35 fighter jet deal between the US and Saudi Arabia, which is considered a security agreement, and the possibility of normalizing relations with the Israeli regime are among the main topics of the meeting.
Trump said in a phone call with the Saudi crown prince last month that with the end of the Gaza war, he expects Saudi Arabia to take steps towards normalizing relations with Israel.
The US president raised the same issue to reporters on Friday, saying that he intends to talk to the Saudi crown prince about the possibility of normalizing relations with Israel.
He expressed hope that Saudi Arabia will join the Abraham Accords in the near future and emphasized that he is examining the possibility of an arms deal with Saudi Arabia, including the F-35 fighter jet.
An unnamed Israeli official told Axios that if the US were to sell F-35 fighter jets to Saudi Arabia without any diplomatic gains, “it would be a mistake and would be counterproductive.”