Saudi Prince Steps In as Power Broker in Trump’s New World Order
- MBS is set to be likely host of Trump-Putin summit in Riyadh
- Kingdom is critical to Arab response to US leader’s Gaza plan
Photographer: Johanna Geron/Pool/AFP/Getty Images
As US President Donald Trump pushes to end the war in Ukraine and upend the order of the Middle East, one fellow world leader is at the heart of both initiatives: Saudi Arabia Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
MBS, as the oil-rich kingdom’s de facto ruler is known, is one of the few global power brokers to enjoy a close relationship with Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, while most Arab heads of state see him as critical to tackling a more erratic Washington. That has positioned Riyadh as the most likely venue for a Trump-Putin summit on Ukraine, and puts Prince Mohammed at the heart of the regional response to Trump’s controversial proposals for war-ravaged Gaza.