US President Biden gives fist bump to Saudi crown prince as he begin crucial meeting

As Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and US President Joe Biden greeted one another at a royal palace on Friday, a key meeting to mend one of the most significant diplomatic ties in the world got underway with a fist bump. As Biden exited his presidential limousine in Jeddah for a visit aimed at resetting their nations' long-standing partnership, the initial meeting was seen by Saudi television.

There was no sign of affection amongst the leaders, and neither Biden nor the crown prince gave greetings to other leaders with their customary backslapping or smiles.

The presumed heir to the kingdom currently held by Prince Mohammed's father, King Salman, Biden has long refused to interact with him.And he sharply denounced the oil-rich monarchy for its violations of human rights, including the killing of writer Jamal Khashoggi, who was living in the United States.

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But other issues, such as soaring gas costs and Iranian aggression in the Middle East, have since supplanted those worries. Saudi Arabia is simultaneously pursuing investments to diversify its economy away from oil production and strengthen its security partnership with the United States.

At the airport in Jeddah, the Saudis gave Biden a muted welcome without any of the pomp and circumstance that surrounded his stop this week in Israel.

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Biden was welcomed by Prince Khalid bin Faisal, the governor of Mecca, and Princess Reema bint Bandar, the ambassador of Saudi Arabia to the United States. He then proceeded to walk down a purple carpet to the limousine that would take him to the palace.

King Salman, an 86-year-old monarch in ill health who has spent time in hospitals twice this year, sat down with the president. The Saudis published a video showing Biden shaking hands with the monarch as the crown prince watched, despite the fact that journalists were not permitted in the room.

Following that, Biden and Prince Mohammed had a larger gathering with a number of advisors. The two men were seated across from one another, which enhanced the idea that they were opposites. The crown prince, whose initials are MBS, has been anxious to promote this image as he solidifies his succession after excluding, detaining, and confiscating the assets of royal rivals and detractors.

His ascent to power has so far ushered in a new age for the kingdom as it strives to develop its own military and arms industry, wean itself off of its reliance on oil as a source of income, and forge security ties to guard against Iran.

The relationship between the 79-year-old US president and the 36-year-old Saudi prince may now determine the future of the region, including the potential for deeper ties between Saudi Arabia and Israel as well as the ups and downs in the world's oil supply.

There had been a lot of conjecture about how Biden, who had pledged as a presidential candidate to treat the Saudis as "pariahs" for their human rights record, would approach his interaction with Prince Mohammed, both in terms of the staging and the content.

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