Joe Biden seeks to counter Russian aggression, Chinese influence through his visit to West Asia next week

US President Joe Biden will next week embark on a controversial visit to Saudi Arabia. On Saturday the leader said that during the visit he aims to "strengthen a strategic partnership" with Saudi Arabia. However, he assured that he plans to hold true to "fundamental American values". During his four-day-long trip (from July 13 to July 16) to West Asia, Biden will also pay a visit to Israel and the West Bank, which, in his words, will "start a new and more promising chapter of America's engagement"in the Middle East.While in Saudi Arabia Biden is likely to push for more Saudi oil output in the hope of curbing skyrocketing fuel costs and inflation at home.

"I know that there are many who disagree with my decision to travel to Saudi Arabia. My views on human rights are clear and long-standing, and fundamental freedoms are always on the agenda when I travel abroad, as they will be during this trip," Biden wrote saidan opinion piecethat appeared in the Washington Post on Saturday.

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His visit also signals a significant shift in the United States' outlook towards the Kingdom and apparent abandonment of efforts to isolate the kingdom's de facto leader, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, over the horrifying murder of a dissident, Jamal Khashoggi.

As a presidential candidate, Biden in 2018 had claimed that the murder and dismemberment of Khashoggi has turned Saudi Arabia into a "pariah."

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Last month, Biden had sought to distance himself from mentions of the Saudi crown prince and had emphasised to reporters that his trip includes meeting with King Salman and his entourage.

But this week, the White House announced that he will visit MBS as a member of that larger delegation while on the trip.

The US president wrote in his op-ed, "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," he continued.

"To do these things, we have to engage directly with countries that can impact those outcomes. Saudi Arabia is one of them, and when I meet with Saudi leaders on Friday."

(With inputs from agencies)

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