(NewsNation) — President Donald Trump wrapped up the first extended foreign trip of his second term Friday, ending a tour he said secured deals worth trillions in the Middle East.
During a Thursday speech in Doha, Trump insisted the trip could raise “a total of three-and-a-half, $4 trillion.” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt placed the total closer to $2 trillion on Friday.
The agreements included:
- Saudi Arabia: $142 billion arms deal, $600 billion investment commitment
- Qatar: $1.2 trillion economic exchange agreement, including historic Boeing plane sale
- United Arab Emirates: $1.4 trillion AI deal, $440 billion in energy sector
The White House reportedly set out with a goal of $1 trillion in agreements for the trip.
As he departed from the region on Air Force One, Trump said the trip was a “fantastic moment for our country,” adding that he “really believes everyone’s talking about it.”
The trip’s fourth and final day included a visit to the Abrahamic Family House — an interfaith center containing a mosque, synagogue and church named after the Abraham Accords he negotiated — in the United Arab Emirates.
Trump did not visit Israel, which conducted strikes on the Gaza Strip on Friday, killing at least 93 people, according to hospitals.
Trump to meet with Putin ‘as soon as we can set it up’
Trump said he expects to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin soon and that he “would actually leave here and go,” but that he wanted to see his new grandchild. His daughter, Tiffany, gave birth to a son Thursday.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio, a Russian delegation and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy convened in Turkey on Friday to discuss a ceasefire, the first direct peace talks in roughly three years. Reporters said the working-level discussions ended after just 15 minutes.
Trump teased earlier in the week that he could potentially attend the talks but ultimately did not stray from planned stops in Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.
“They all said Putin was going and Zelenskyy was going. And I said, If I don’t go, I guarantee Putin is not going, and he didn’t go,” Trump said. “And I understand that, but we’re going to get it done. We’ve got to get it done.”
Rubio told reporters he was not expecting a significant breakthrough, with neither Trump nor Putin attending.
Trump on Iranian nuclear deal: ‘Come a long way’
After saying on Thursday that Tehran “sort of” agreed to the terms of a new nuclear deal, Trump on Friday said of Iran: “I think we’re talking to them.”
“I think they’ve come a long way,” he added.
A source familiar with the situation confirmed to NewsNation on Thursday that a proposal for a nuclear deal was presented to Iran during the fourth round of talks last weekend.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi pushed back on those claims on social media.
“Iran has not received any written proposal from the United States, whether directly or indirectly … Mark my words: there is no scenario in which Iran abandons its hard-earned right to enrichment for peaceful purposes: a right afforded to all other NPT signatories, too,” the post reads in part.