President Donald Trump's visit to the Middle East comes amid long-term changes in relations between the US and Arab nations. In recent years, it appears that rulers in the Middle East are conducting more complex foreign policy. Their gaze is no longer fixed solely on Washington but increasingly on Beijing and Moscow.
Senior Saudi researcher Dr. Aziz Alghashian does not believe there will be a significant turning point in US-Saudi relations following President Donald Trump's visit. He believes the Saudis will demonstrate that they are "ready to do business, but not at any price."
Alghashian recalls the Iranian drone attack on the kingdom's oil facilities six years ago. He says, "One of the factors behind the rapprochement between Saudi Arabia and Iran was Trump's lack of response in 2019, or the hesitant response." Riyadh and Tehran reestablished ties in an agreement mediated by China in March 2023.
"I think it was a disappointment," the Saudi researcher tells Israel Hayom about the 2019 events. "It demonstrated to the Saudis the fact that they said, 'Okay, we'll need to do things completely differently from now on. We'll need to invest more in the regional rapprochement process, especially with Iran and even with other actors. And if the US can help with that, then that would be good. If not, we can at least protect ourselves from the consequences that Donald Trump might bring.'"
"In my opinion, there are also differences between Trump's current visit and Trump's visit in 2017. That year, there wasn't just investment in trying to develop relations between Saudi Arabia and the US, but also investment in Trump himself. There was a reception that really tried to 'win over' Trump. This time the visit is different and more business-oriented. I think the Saudis will demonstrate that they are ready to do business, but not at any price," he said.
He estimates that during the visit, the parties will not discuss normalization with Israel. In this context, a Palestinian source who briefed Sky News in Arabic said that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman promised Palestinian Authority Deputy Chairman Hussein al-Sheikh that there would be no normalization with Israel without ending the war in Gaza and a diplomatic process to establish a Palestinian state.
Regarding the ceasefire in Yemen, the Saudi researcher says the Saudis welcomed the agreement between the US and the Houthis. At the same time, the Saudi researcher notes that this is an example of why the Saudis are so skeptical about Washington's intentions. "I think the Saudis know that the US did this not for Red Sea security but for American ships. It was a sort of 'America First' approach, and perhaps an 'America Only' approach. The danger in this is that it could stop at any time, and that's exactly what happened in the past."
He says the Saudi concern regarding Yemen stems from the fact that they could theoretically mobilize ground forces against the Houthis and ultimately there would be no real change or no results from the US. "Imagine if Saudi Arabia had prepared ground forces. That was one of the things discussed a few weeks ago. The Saudis understand that they've been there before and there's a whole history where they didn't see things from the US. And then suddenly the response wasn't strategic enough, or wasn't enough to bring about real change. And I think that's the difficulty. That's why I think they welcome it. Any increased tension would be harder to manage. It could spill over into Saudi Arabia."
Recent decisions by the Trump administration may also erode America's standing. According to the Arab Barometer polling institute, the decision to freeze the activities of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) could further damage America's standing. According to the institute, since the October 7 massacre and the subsequent war, Arab public opinion favorable to the US is already declining compared to attitudes toward China.
Just last month, China and Egypt held their first joint air exercise, grandiosely named "Eagles of Civilization 2025." The drills began in April and continued until early May. This is part of a long-term process led by Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi. Since coming to power a decade ago, he has visited China eight times. His predecessor, Hosni Mubarak, who served for 30 years until his removal, made only six visits. The American think tank Atlantic Council recently noted in a report that early 2025 marked the "golden decade" in relations between the two countries. The institute estimated that China is expected to increase its presence in the land of the Nile. Just last December, contracts and memoranda of understanding worth billions of dollars were signed.
Arab anger
Additionally, Trump's announcement about the evacuation plan from Gaza and his desire for Egypt and Jordan to absorb Palestinians provoked anger in Cairo. El-Sissi postponed his visit to Washington until further notice, and as we published in Israel Hayom, a venomous campaign against the US and Israel was conducted on social media through a digital influence network. In fact, Egypt is not at all on Trump's itinerary in the Middle East.
"Egypt-America relations are experiencing a deep and worsening crisis since the rise of the Trump administration," exiled Egyptian writer Mohamed Saad Khairallah tells Israel Hayom. "This crisis has expanded to the extent that it borders on political adventurism by Cairo with its strongest ally in the world, one that has never disappointed its allies. It seems that the Egyptian regime is adopting an approach that contradicts its supreme interests for the Egyptian state."
According to the source, "Within a short period of time, Cairo sent four 'rejection' messages to Washington, what could be called 'Cairo's four nos.' First, no to accepting refugees from Gaza on Egyptian territory, so that this pressure card remains in the regime's hands for political negotiation. Second, no to the legitimate American request for Egypt's participation in the military coalition against the Houthis, before the recent developments on the issue, and the Houthi declaration of relative surrender. Third, no to America's legitimate desire to allow free passage for American ships through the Suez Canal, which is considered an unprecedented escalation in bilateral relations. And fourth, no to the head of state himself. President el-Sissi responded to President Trump's invitation to visit Washington by accepting his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin's invitation, he participated in Victory Day celebrations, and even invited a unit from the Egyptian armed forces to appear at these celebrations, with their clear symbolic and political significance."
The Egyptian writer warns that "the escalation of signals continues – from the announcement of new arms deals with China and South Korea to joint military exercises for elite forces in Turkey, all these steps were implemented in recent weeks. The clearest message Cairo is sending to the White House resident is, 'We are going to join the other camp.' There is no doubt that this trend will have serious consequences if things continue this way, both for the future of relations between the two countries and for Egypt's regional and international stability."
