US President Donald Trump has signed a strategic economic agreement with Saudi Arabia and announced the lifting of sanctions on Syria at the start of a tour of Gulf states aimed at drumming up trillions of dollars in investments.
A defence sales agreement worth nearly $142 (€127.5) billion will provide Saudi Arabia with state-of-the-art equipment and services from US firms, the White House said.
The defence deal is part of a $600 billion Saudi investment commitment for the US, a White House fact sheet added.
"The package signed today, the largest defense cooperation deal in U.S. history, is a clear demonstration of our commitment to strengthening our partnership," the fact sheet said.
The agreement also includes exports of GE gas turbines and energy solutions totalling $14.2 billion, and Boeing 737-8 passenger aircraft totalling $4.8 billion.
Syria's foreign minister said that Mr Trump's decision to lift sanctions on Syria was a "pivotal turning point" for the country.
Speaking to Syrian state news agency SANA, Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani said he welcomed the announcement, calling it a "pivotal turning point for the Syrian people, as we move towards a future of stability, self-sufficiency and genuine reconstruction after years of destructive war".
In a speech given in Riyadh, the US president said he "will be ordering the cessation of sanctions against Syria in order to give them a chance at greatness".
Ever since overthrowing longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad in December, Syria's new Islamist rulers have been pushing Western states to lift sanctions imposed largely on the former president's government.
US sanctions have isolated Syria from the global financial system and imposed a range of economic restrictions on the government throughout more than a decade of civil war.
The lingering sanctions have widely been seen as a major obstacle to Syria's economic recovery and post-war reconstruction.
Earlier, Mr Trump punched the air as he emerged from Air Force One to be greeted by Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who later signed an agreement with the president which Saudi state television said covered energy, defence, mining and other areas.
"I really believe we like each other a lot," Mr Trump said during a meeting in Riyadh with the crown prince, Saudi Arabia's de facto ruler.
"I will be ordering the cessation of sanctions against Syria in order to give them a chance at greatness," Mr Trump also said.
"It's their time to shine. We're taking them all off," he said, "Good luck Syria, show us something very special."
Mr Trump, who is accompanied by a host of US business leaders including billionaire Elon Musk, will go on from Riyadh to Qatar tomorrow and the United Arab Emirates on Thursday.
He has not scheduled a stop in Israel, a decision that has raised questions about where the close ally stands in Washington's priorities, and the focus of the trip is on investment rather than security matters in the Middle East.
"While energy remains a cornerstone of our relationship, the investments and business opportunities in the kingdom have expanded and multiplied many, many times over," Saudi Investment Minister Khalid al-Falih said as he opened the forum.
"As a result... when Saudis and Americans join forces very good things happen, more often than not great things happen when those joint ventures happen," he said before Mr Trump's arrival.
In a meeting at the Royal Court, Mr Trump called the Saudi crown prince a friend and said they have a good relationship, according to a pool report from the Wall Street Journal.
Mr Trump recalled travelling to the kingdom in 2017 and said Saudi investment would help create jobs in the US.
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He said jokingly that a $600-billion investment pledge by Saudi Arabia could be $1 trillion, repeating a figure he has cited before as he seeks investment from an important strategic partner.
Riyadh hosted a Saudi-US investment forum as Mr Trump visited, with attendees including Larry Fink, the CEO of asset management firm BlackRock, Stephen A. Schwartzman, CEO of asset manager Blackstone, and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.
Mr Musk chatted briefly with both Mr Trump and the crown prince, who is otherwise known as MbS, during a palace reception for the US president.
Joining Mr Trump for a lunch with MbS were top US businessmen including Mr Musk, the Tesla and SpaceX chief, and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman.
MbS has focused on diversifying the kingdom's economy in a major reform programme dubbed Vision 2030 that includes "Giga-projects" such as NEOM, a futuristic city the size of Belgium.
A Saudi company will invest $20 billion in artificial intelligence-related sites in the United States, the White House said.
Saudi firm DataVolt "is moving forward with plans to invest $20 billion in AI data centres and energy infrastructure in the United States", the White House said in a statement.
Oil generated 62% of Saudi government revenue last year.
Watch: US President Donald Trump arrives in Riyadh
"About a billion dollars of investment is being made in frontier technologies and obviously it is no surprise that the lion's share's of these investments has gone into US companies," NEOM Deputy CEO Rayan Fayez told the forum.
The kingdom has scaled back some of its ambitions as rising costs and falling oil prices weigh.
Saudi Arabia is the largest customer for US arms.
Saudi Arabia and the US have maintained strong ties for decades based on an ironclad arrangement in which the kingdom delivers oil and the superpower provides security in exchange.
MbS' ties with Mr Trump have been smoother than with his predecessor, Joe Biden.
Their relations were strained by the 2018 killing of Saudi commentator Jamal Khashoggi by Saudi agents in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul.
US intelligence believed the killing was ordered by MbS. He denied involvement.
Mr Biden's administration tried unsuccessfully to finalise a defense pact with Riyadh as part of a broad deal that envisioned Saudi Arabia normalising ties with Israel.
Mr Trump has not included Israel on his schedule although he wants Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to agree a new ceasefire deal in the Gaza war.
Israeli officials have put a brave face on Mr Trump's decision, but there are growing doubts in Israel about its position in his priorities as frustration mounts in Washington over the failure to end the war.
Israel's military operations against Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon, and its assassinations of the two Iran-allied groups' leaders, have at the same time given Mr Trump more leverage by weakening Tehran and its regional allies.
Saudi Arabia and the US have maintained strong ties for decades based on an ironclad arrangement in which the kingdom delivers oil and the superpower provides security.
Mr Trump has also said he may travel on Thursday to Turkey for potential face-to-face talks between Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky on Russia's war in Ukraine.
An aide to Mr Zelensky said the Ukrainian president would take part only if Mr Putin does. The Russian leader has not said if he will attend, and has questioned Mr Zelensky's legitimacy.
Mr Trump's second foreign trip since returning to the presidency - his first was to Rome for Pope Francis's funeral - comes at a time of geopolitical tension.
In addition to pressing for a settlement in Ukraine, his administration is pushing for a new aid mechanism for Gaza after 19 months of war and urging Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to agree a new ceasefire deal there.
Over the weekend, US and Iranian negotiators met in Oman to discuss a potential deal to curb Tehran's nuclear programme. Mr Trump has threatened military action against Iran if diplomacy fails.
Iran's neighbours should retain neutrality as Mr Trump visits the Gulf, Iran's Nour news quoted armed forces chief of staff Mohammad Bagheri as saying. Any aggression against Iran would lead to definitive retaliation, he added.
Apart from the possible Turkey side trip, those matters are not the focus of Mr Trump's Middle East swing as now scheduled.
Mr Trump's Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff said last week he expected progress imminently on expanding the Abraham Accords, a set of deals brokered by Mr Trump in his first term by which Arab states including the UAE, Bahrain and Morocco recognised Israel.
But opposition by Mr Netanyahu to a permanent stop to the war in Gaza or to the creation of a Palestinian state makes progress on similar talks with Riyadh unlikely, sources said.
Mr Trump's second and third stops, in Qatar and the UAE, are similarly expected to focus on economic issues.
