Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud met with President Donald Trump at the White House on Tuesday, where the president said the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia plans to invest $1 trillion in the United States.
The meeting included [1] discussions on U.S.–Saudi relations, defense cooperation, and regional security.
During the Oval Office portion of the visit, Trump addressed questions from reporters about the 2018 killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
“A lot of people didn’t like” Khashoggi, Trump said when asked about the matter.
The Biden-Harris administration released a report in 2021 stating that the crown prince approved an operation to “capture or kill” Khashoggi.
Saudi officials rejected the report, calling it a “negative, false and unacceptable assessment.”
MBS responded to questions during the meeting.
“About the journalist, it’s really painful to hear anyone losing his life for no real purpose or not in a legal way,” he said.
“And it’s been painful for us in Saudi Arabia. We did all the right steps of investigation, et cetera, in Saudi Arabia. And we’ve improved our system to be sure that nothing happened like that.”
ABC News correspondent Mary Bruce questioned Trump about whether his family’s business ties to Saudi Arabia constituted a conflict of interest.
The president criticized the network.
“People are wise to your hoax,” Trump said.
“Your crappy company is one of the perpetrators. And I’ll tell you something, I think the license should be taken away from ABC because your news is so fake and is so wrong. And we have a great commissioner, a chairman, who should look at that.”
“You should go and look at the Democrats who received money from Epstein… They don’t get any press, they don’t get any news, [but] you’re not after the Radical Left because you’re a Radical Left network.” ✅ https://t.co/BXpHQdp5mW [2]
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) November 18, 2025 [3]
Trump added that he no longer manages the Trump Organization and does not participate in overseas business decisions.
At a State Dinner later that evening, Trump announced that Saudi Arabia has been formally designated a major non-NATO ally.
.@POTUS [4]: “Tonight, I’m pleased to announce that we are taking our military cooperation to even greater heights by formally designating Saudi Arabia as a major non-NATO ally.” pic.twitter.com/9n4HzMmuMG [5]
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) November 19, 2025 [6]
The president also said the kingdom will purchase F-35 fighter jets as part of ongoing defense cooperation between the two countries.
Elon Musk was among the guests observed at the dinner.
BREAKING: Elon Musk has just been spotted at the White House attending President Trump’s state dinner for the Saudi Crown Prince
FINALLY he’s back! This is great news for America.
Elon and Trump are an unstoppable force together pic.twitter.com/8jr9GrTr7Z [7]
— Nick Sortor (@nicksortor) November 19, 2025 [8]
During the visit, Trump showed the crown prince the Biden autopen portrait displayed on the Presidential Wall of Fame.
President Trump shows the Saudi Crown Prince the infamous President Autopen portrait at the White House pic.twitter.com/9VTMtjnmzu [9]
— Daily Wire (@realDailyWire) November 18, 2025 [10]
The White House said the $1 trillion Saudi commitment reflects long-term investment planning between the two countries.
.@POTUS [4] on Saudi Arabia’s $1T investment in the U.S.: “When you invest a trillion dollars, that’s national security for us, too, because it creates jobs. It creates a lot of things… That’s a real ally that will do that. It creates a lot of power for the United States.” pic.twitter.com/XY1EH1mUsb [11]
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) November 18, 2025 [12]