SAO PAULO, SP (Folhapress) – In the first major international turn of his second term, Donald Trump has been welcomed with extravagance and symbolic gestures that appear to flatter the president and other members of the United States delegation.
In Qatar, the second of three countries included in Trump’s script for the Middle East, a scene caught the eye on Wednesday (14): the president’s entourage was conducted by, a company whose owner is the billionaire Elon Musk, right-hand man of the Republican leader.
Musk is even part of the American delegation. In Doha, the Qatari capital, the businessman met on Wednesday with the Bandar Bin Saoud Al-Thani, the president of the Central Bank in the Gulf country. According to local press, they discussed global finance and investment, among other matters.
Trump and the other members of the American entourage landed in the Middle East with the declared goal of not talking about policy and focusing only on business -the president wants to sign investment agreements that reach a combined value of $ 1 trillion ($ 5.6 trillion), an overwhelming amount of money that equals all Saudi Arabia GDP, the first destination of the trip.
Part of this goal was achieved in Doha with the realization of an agreement, widely entered into by Washington, for the purchase of American Boeing jets. The White House said the business, also involving other sectors, reaches $ 243 billion ($ 1.3 trillion). Already Trump said that the request made by the company Qatar Airways is the largest received from the US manufacturer in history.
The state airline signed a $ 96 billion agreement to buy up to 210 Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft and 777x made in the US, according to Washington. No deadlines were disclosed for the request.
Before the agreement was completed, news agencies reported that the emirate’s royal family was about to offer Washington a Boeing 747-8, estimated by $ 400 million experts. The plane may be the most expensive item ever donated to the US government in the history of American diplomacy. “I thank you very much and would never refuse such a offer. I would have to be too dumb to say, ‘No, I don’t want a very expensive plane for free,” Trump said on the subject.
In Saudi Arabia, Trump’s first destination in his Middle East turn, the US president had a luxurious reception. The Republican landed at the Royal Terminal, a special section of King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, the Saudi capital, and came across a delegation of entrepreneurs and royalty members -the prince’s prince Mohammed Bin Salman, de facto ruler of the region.
Trump said Saudi Arabia has committed to invest $ 600 billion through dozens of agreements in the defense, artificial intelligence and energy sectors. However, it was not clear when the money would be invested, and analysts warned that some of the agreements may not materialize.
In both Saudi Arabia and Qatar, several Air Force fighters escorted the plane that transported Trump. At the first destination, the president’s entourage was also accompanied by white Arab horses, a scene that, according to the American press, looked like a royalty member.
After Qatar, Trump closes the spin to the Middle East visiting the United Arab Emirates.
