Saudi crown prince, US state secretary discuss cooperation

Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman met with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Jeddah, the Saudi Press Agency reported early Wednesday.

The pair discussed ways to enhance cooperation and bilateral relations in various fields, and efforts toward the latest regional and International developments.

Senior Saudi and US officials attended the meeting.

Blinken arrived in Jeddah on Tuesday.

His trip comes as the Kingdom and US seek to broker a durable cease-fire between Sudan’s warring generals in ongoing talks in Jeddah.

Blinken will participate in a US-Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) ministerial meeting to discuss growing cooperation with Gulf partners and how they can promote security, stability, de-escalation, regional integration, and economic opportunities across the Middle East, spokesman Matt Miller said.

The state secretary and Saudi foreign minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan will co-host a ministerial meeting of the Global Coalition to Defeat Daesh “to address the continuing threat of (Daesh) and reaffirm our commitment to ensure its enduring defeat,” he added.