The Washington Post: Trump's hugging of Muhammad bin Salman is costing him a lot now

Writer Jackson Dell says in an article published by the Washington Post that the embrace of US President Donald Trump for Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman costs him a lot now.

He adds that Trump committed one of the biggest mistakes of his presidency in the spring of 2017 when he offered unconditional embrace to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, 31, and adopted his directions and policies to confront Iran strongly.

After three years, Trump's choice has become more expensive, the writer says, adding that while Trump's slow response to the Corona virus contributed to the acceleration of the stock market decline, the market turmoil was also driven by the reckless moves of the Saudi crown prince in recent times.

The writer says that bin Salman decided - contrary to the advice of his ministers - to flood markets with cheap Saudi oil, which caused the global price to drop and put the oil industry in the United States at risk.

This explains the reason for Trump's phone call to Muhammad bin Salman on Monday, as stocks began to decline.

According to the author, it is easy to guess that the president's message is similar to the public statement of his country's energy ministry, which denounced attempts by international players to manipulate oil prices.

However, bin Salman did not care about what Trump said, but rather the Saudi Oil Minister announced another significant increase in oil production, which led to the stock's value falling again.

Then came the missile attack, which is believed to be an Iranian-backed militia launched on a base in Iraq, killing and wounding American soldiers, which led to a downward spiral of American raids and missile attacks by militias, and returned Trump to the brink of war with Iran.

The author notes that Trump has stubbornly defended Bin Salman over a number of adventures, including the disastrous war in Yemen, the failed siege of the State of Qatar, and the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul.

The writer says that bin Salman's promise to Trump of major Saudi purchases of American weapons was unfulfilled, and that Trump's reward from his supposedly great ally at the time of extreme need was the volatility of American markets and the killing of American soldiers.

He adds that the Saudis claim that Bin Salman is not intentionally seeking to sabotage the relationship with Trump, and say that the true quarrel of the Saudi crown prince is with Russian President Vladimir Putin, who refused to agree to a Saudi proposal to cut oil production to stabilize prices, which prompted Saudi Aramco to pump More oil on the market to lower prices.

The author adds that Trump previously made an advertisement in the New York Times in 1987 referring to Saudi Arabia, where he says that its presence depends on the United States, and that the world laughs at American politicians that they are protecting ships they do not have and that carry the oil they do not need and are directed at allies who do not They help the United States.

He explains that Saudi Arabia still depends on the United States for its survival, and that US forces still protect tankers carrying Saudi oil in the Gulf, even though the United States needs much less imported oil than it was in 1987.

The author concludes that Trump sent thousands of his soldiers to defend Saudi oil fields in the face of Iranian attacks, but he remained strangely negative when Bin Salman repeatedly acted against American interests.