US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is expected to meet with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman during his upcoming visit to Saudi Arabia, a US official told CNN, the latest step toward rapprochement between the US government and the de facto leader of a key US ally.
Relations between the two countries have been strained in recent years following the torture and murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, for which a US intelligence report held the Crown Prince responsible. But in the wake of fluctuating oil prices over the past year -- Saudi Arabia this week said it will slash oil output starting in July as part of an effort by producers to shore up crude prices -- the Biden administration has sought to reengage with the kingdom.
Blinken will "meet with Saudi officials to discuss US-Saudi strategic cooperation on regional and global issues and a range of bilateral issues including economic and security cooperation," and also participate in meetings of the US-Gulf Cooperation Council and the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS, the State Department's travel summary said.
Speaking to the pro-Israel lobbying group AIPAC on Monday, Blinken also said that normalization between Israel and Saudi Arabia would be a topic of conversation during his trip.
The production cut announced by Saudi Arabia over the weekend was its biggest in years and will depress its output to 9 million barrels per day. It came after a meeting in Vienna of the alliance known as OPEC+, which includes members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), Russia and other smaller producers.
Asked to comment on the decision to slash production ahead of Blinken's visit, deputy State Department spokesperson Vedant Patel noted that gasoline prices have generally fallen in the US from heights reached a year ago.
"We believe that supply should meet demand, and we'll continue to work with all producers and consumers to ensure that energy markets support economic growth and lower prices for American families," Patel said at a briefing. "That's what we're focusing on."
On the campaign trail, then-candidate Joe Biden promised to make Saudi Arabia "the pariah that they are" on the world stage and "make them pay the price" for Khashoggi's murder. But he reneged on that vow by visiting the country last year and giving the crown prince a fist bump, providing a photo opportunity for the Saudi government and outraging human rights groups.
At the time, the president defended his actions by saying his Saudi trip was critical to US security.
"As president, it is my job to keep our country strong and secure. We have to counter Russia's aggression, put ourselves in the best possible position to outcompete China, and work for greater stability in a consequential region of the world," Biden wrote in an op-ed for The Washington Post.
"To do these things, we have to engage directly with countries that can impact those outcomes," he wrote.
Months after Biden's visit, the US determined that bin Salman should be granted immunity in a case brought against him by Khashoggi's fiancée.