The US president arrived in Ryad Saturday morning, the first stage of a diplomatic journey that will also take him to the Vatican and Brussels.


In turmoil’s situation after a week of overwhelming revelations about the possible ties between his team and Russia, US President Donald Trump arrived Saturday morning in Saudi Arabia. The Air Force One plane landed shortly before 9:50 am local time at King Khaled airport in Ryad where the red carpet was unrolled for the president and his wife Melania.

The Saudi kingdom relies on the United States to counter the influence of Iran, its rival in the Middle East, while Washington hopes for greater involvement of Riyadh in the fight against "terrorism" and religious extremism.

Trump announced that the White House is calling for the creation of an “Arab-NATO” to « fight terrorism » and put pressure on Iran, one of Saudi Arabia’s most despised neighbors in the region.

Next The United States and Saudi Arabia signed more than $380 billion in agreements on Saturday, Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir said. Saudi Arabia's official SPA reported 34 agreements in areas as diverse as defense, oil and air transport, but did not provide a total amount. This defense equipment is intended to support the "long-term security" of Saudi Arabia and the Gulf region "in the face of Iranian threats," he said.

The announcement came on the day of the re-election of Iranian President Hassan Rohani, a supporter of his country's openness to the world. Saudi Arabia, mostly Sunni, considers Iran, the Shiite power, as its main enemy in the Middle East. The two countries are opposed in particular into international armed conflicts in Syria and Yemen.

Nevertheless Saudi’s continues to arrest, and convict peaceful dissidents. Dozens of human rights defenders and activists are in jail for criticizing authorities or advocating political and rights reforms. Authorities systematically discriminate against women and religious minorities, and only last year they carried out more than 154 executions, and 23 for non-violent drug crimes. Saudi-led coalition forces committ daily serious violations of international law, including war crimes, in Yemen

In 2016, Saudi Arabia executed 47 men for terrorism-related offenses, including prominent Shia cleric Nimr al-Nimr, who was convicted following a deeply flawed trial. A Saudi-led coalition continued an airstrike campaign in Yemen that included the use of banned cluster munitions and apparently unlawful strikes that killed civilians. 

ICSFT condemns in the strongest terms US arms sales to Saudi and urges the Saudi government to stop the genocide in Yemen, the use of cluster munitions and unlawful strikes, as well as to stop sales of weapons to countries that are violating human rights

ICSFT calls the international community to take the appropriate measures and stand in order to put an end to the ongoing crimes led by Saudi.