U.S. President Donald Trump and Saudi Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman have pledged to improve bilateral economic cooperation and face up to Iran's "destabilizing regional activities" during a meeting on March 14, the White House said.
Trump reiterated his support for their countries' "enduring strategic partnership" and his backing for a new U.S.-Saudi economic cooperation plan "potentially worth more than $200 billion in direct and indirect investments within the next four years," the White House said in a statement issued on March 15.
The two leaders underlined that enhanced economic cooperation could create as many as "1 million direct American jobs within the next four years, millions of indirect American jobs, as well as jobs in Saudi Arabia.
Jobs creation in America was one of Trump's most important promises during his election campaign.
The program would be focused on energy, industry, infrastructure, and technology, the White House statement said. The two leaders also agreed to continue consultations on energy to ensure global economic growth and to limit "supply disruption and volatility."
Trump and Prince Mohammed "noted the importance of confronting Iran's destabilizing regional activities" while continuing to monitor and "strictly enforce" a nuclear deal which world powers and Tehran signed in 2015, the statement said.
Trump has repeatedly criticized the deal, which provides for Iran to limit its nuclear activities in return for a reduction in international sanctions.
During the meeting, Trump also voiced "his strong desire to achieve a comprehensive, just, and lasting settlement to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict" and to continue to cooperate with Saudi Arabia to resolve regional issues, it said.