Saudi-US Relations: Trump, Prince Discuss Curbing Iran's Influence In Middle-East

President Donald Trump hosted Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia for lunch at the White House Tuesday, in which they discussed about the threats of the Islamic State group and Syria, the White House said in a statement. The meeting made way for better relations between the two nations, especially after a strained diplomacy between the Obama administration and Saudi Arabia, reported Reuters.

Saudi Arabia has called the meeting a "historical turning point" in the U.S.-Saudi relations. Both the leaders agreed that Iran posed a regional security threat, according to Reuters.

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“Relations had undergone a period of difference of opinion,” a senior adviser to the crown prince said in a statement after Tuesday’s meeting. “However, today’s meeting has put things on the right track, and marked a significant shift in relations, across all political, military, security and economic fields," Bloomberg reported.

Trump's hard rhetoric on Iran, which was in contrast to the Obama administration, has eased the relation between the U.S. and the world's top oil exporter. The Trump administration's decision to include Iran in its travel ban for people seeking new visas was also appreciated by Saudi, who views the Shiite-ruled nation's influence in Yemen, Bahrain, Lebanon, Iraq and Syria as a danger to its security, ABC reported Monday.

Unlike former President Barack Obama, who refused to forcefully engage in Middle Eastern issues like the war in Syria, Trump's presidency takes a hard line against Iran, which has infused optimism in Saudi Arabia and its Persian Gulf neighbors, the New York Times reported.

The Trump administration considers Saudi Arabia as an important component to get Middle East allies to help break the deadlock in the Israel-Palestine conflict. Jared Kushner, Trump's son-in-law and senior adviser, has been tasked with bringing peace between the two countries, the New York Times reported.

The Saudi Arabian prince's visit was expected to be a short meet but finally turned to a formal lunch. Trump and the prince got the opportunity to discuss Yemen, where a civil war has pitted Iranian-aligned Houthi rebels against a Saudi-led coalition of mostly Sunni Arab countries with American support. The U.S. too is gearing up for a campaign against al Qaeda. Trump will take a decision soon on whether to resume arms sales to the Saudis, according to Reuters.