Saudi Arabia’s MBS to Visit Egypt in First Public Foreign Trip

Local Editor

Saudi Arabia's Mohammed bin Salman [MBS] is to visit Egypt on Sunday to meet President Abdel Fattah al-Sissi in his first public foreign trip since becoming crown prince last year, Sissi's office said on Friday.

The three-day visit will start on March 4, with the Saudi crown prince then traveling to London on March 7 and the United States, Riyadh's closest Western ally, on March 19.

Prince Mohammed was named heir to the throne last summer, pushing aside his older cousin Mohammed bin Nayef.

MBS will also begin a visit to Britain on March 7, which will include talks with Prime Minister Theresa May on topics such as extremism and societal reform.

News of his visit to the US comes on the heels of a report that the Trump administration is launching talks with Riyadh on an atomic energy agreement linked to the Obama-era nuclear deal with Iran.

Energy Secretary Rick Perry will lead an interagency US delegation to talks with the Saudis in London on Friday, two administration officials and three outside advisers said. The meeting comes as the Arab powerhouse explores a civilian nuclear energy program, possibly without restrictions on uranium enrichment and reprocessing that would be required under a US cooperation deal.

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team