WASHINGTON — US President Donald Trump’s first foreign trip will feature visits to Israel, Saudi Arabia and the Vatican, he said Thursday, noting that he will meet with leaders from across the Muslim world in Saudi Arabia. The Holy See confirmed that the pope would host him in Rome.
“My first foreign trip as president of the United States will be to Saudi Arabia, then Israel, and then to a place that my cardinals love very much, Rome,” Trump told reporters.
A White House statement said the visit to Israel was aimed at “further strengthen(ing) the United States-Israel partnership. The leaders will discuss a range of regional issues, including the need to counter the threats posed by Iran and its proxies, and by ISIS and other terrorist groups. They will also discuss ways to advance a genuine and lasting peace between the Israelis and Palestinians.”
Trump had also accepted an invitation to meet Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, the statement said, “to discuss ways to advance peace between the Israelis and Palestinians, as well as efforts to unlock the potential of the Palestinian economy.” There was no word as to where that meeting would take place.
He does not intend to go to Ramallah, Channel 2 reported, but rather wants to visit Bethlehem. His meeting with Abbas would be their second in less than a month. READ MORE
