RIYADH, Saudi Arabia — The Latest on President Donald Trump’s first trip abroad (all times local):
10:20 a.m.
President Donald Trump is making plans for another foreign trip as he eases into his first.
Trump said Sunday he would accept an invitation made by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi to visit Egypt. Trump said the visit would happen before long.
Trump is also calling el-Sissi his “friend” and praising him for the release of U.S. aid worker Aya Hijazi, who had been held captive for three years.
Through a translator, el-Sissi said Trump “had a unique personality” that allowed him “to do the impossible.”
Trump smiled and said “I agree.”
Trump was also overheard complimenting el-Sissi’s shoes.
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9:58 a.m.
President Donald Trump says that he and the Emir of Qatar will discuss the purchase of “lots of beautiful military equipment.”
Trump and Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani met Sunday morning in Riyadh in a bilateral meeting.
The president said the two nations had been “friends for a long time.” He added that “no one makes” military equipment like the United States and said a deal would create jobs for the U.S. and security for Qatar.
The potion of the meeting open to reporters did not include any discussion of human rights in Qatar. The nation has come under scrutiny for the harsh conditions faced by workers building the venues for the 2022 World Cup.
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9:23 a.m.
President Donald Trump is beginning his day of meetings with Arab leaders with the King of Bahrain.
Trump says the two countries “have a wonderful relationship” but “there has been a little strain.”
He vowed Sunday to improve things further. Trump did not specify what tension he needed to resolve. The two countries have had a long-term military alliance though the U.S. Was critical of Bahrain’s response to uprisings during the Arab Spring.
The King of Bahrain also praised the two nations’ long-term alliance.
Trump is set to have a day of meetings before delivering a major speech to the Muslim world urging unity in the fight against terror.
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9:05 a.m.
President Donald Trump is kicking off the second day of his first foreign trip abroad with a series of bilateral and group meetings with foreign leaders.
Trump will meet with leaders from Bahrain, Qatar, Egypt, Kuwait, and other countries before delivering a speech on fighting extremism.
The president will urge leaders in the region to “drive out the terrorists from your places of worship.” That’s according to a draft of the speech obtained by The Associated Press.
He’ll also attend the opening of the new Global Center for Combating Extremist Ideology.
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7:20 A.M.
President Donald Trump is using the nation that is home to Islam’s holiest site as a backdrop to call for unity across the Muslim world in the fight against terrorism.
In Trump’s Sunday speech, which is the centerpiece of his two-day visit to Saudi Arabia, he will address 50 Muslim and Arab leaders and urge them to “drive out the terrorists from your places of worship.” That’s according to a draft of the speech obtained by The Associated Press.
Trump’s presidential campaign was frequently punctuated by bouts of anti-Islamic rhetoric. He is now poised to soften some of his language about the Muslim faith.
Though during the campaign Trump repeatedly stressed the need to say the words “radical Islamic terrorism,” that phrase is not included in the draft.
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