Saudi Arabia pledges $600b investment in US

Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman told President Donald Trump that the kingdom wants to put $600 billion into expanded investment and trade with the United States over the next four years, the Saudi State news agency said early on Thursday.

In a phone call between the two leaders, the crown prince said the Trump administration's expected reforms could create "unprecedented economic prosperity", the state news agency reported.

The report said Saudi Arabia wants its investments to capitalize on these conditions. It did not detail the source of the $600 billion, whether it would be public or private spending nor how the money would be deployed.

The investment "could increase further if additional opportunities arise", the agency quoted Bin Salman as telling Trump.

Trump fostered close ties with Gulf states including Saudi Arabia during his first term.

The country invested $2 billion in a firm formed by Jared Kushner, Trump's son-in-law and former aide, after Trump left office.

Trump said following his inauguration on Monday that he would consider making Saudi Arabia his first destination for a foreign visit if Riyadh agreed to buy $500 billion worth of American products, similar to what he did in his first term.

"I did it with Saudi Arabia last time because they agreed to buy $450 billion worth of our product. I said I'll do it but you have to buy American product, and they agreed to do that," Trump said, referring to his 2017 visit to the Gulf kingdom.

On the other hand, Trump stepped up the pressure on Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin to make a peace deal with Ukraine Wednesday, threatening tougher economic measures if Moscow does not agree to end the war.

Trump's warning in a Truth Social post came as the Republican seeks a quick solution to a grinding conflict that he had promised to end before even starting his second term.

"If we don't make a 'deal,' and soon, I have no other choice but to put high levels of Taxes, Tariffs, and Sanctions on anything being sold by Russia to the United States, and various other participating countries," Trump said.

Trump said he was "not looking to hurt Russia" and had "always had a very good relationship with President Putin", a leader for whom he has expressed admiration in the past.

"All of that being said, I'm going to do Russia, whose Economy is failing, and President Putin, a very big FAVOR. Settle now, and STOP this ridiculous War! IT'S ONLY GOING TO GET WORSE."

He added: "Let's get this war, which never would have started if I were President, over with! We can do it the easy way, or the hard way - and the easy way is always better. It's time to 'MAKE A DEAL.'"

Russia already faces crushing US sanctions over the war since invading Ukraine in 2022 and trade has slowed to a trickle. Trump's predecessor Joe Biden's administration imposed sweeping sanctions against Moscow's energy sector earlier this month.

But Trump -- a billionaire tycoon famed for his book "The Art of the Deal" -- and his administration reportedly believe there are ways of toughening measures to press Putin.

The United States imported $2.9 billion in goods from Russia from January to November 2024 -- down sharply from $4.3 billion over the same period in 2023, according to the US Department of Commerce.

Top US imports from Russia include fertilizers and precious metals.

It was Trump's toughest line on Putin since he returned to the White House this week, and comes despite fears that it was Kyiv rather than Moscow that he would strongarm into making a peace deal.

During a White House press conference on Tuesday Trump said only that it "sounds likely" that he would apply additional sanctions if Putin did not come to the table.

The US president however declined to say whether he would continue Biden's policy of sending billions of dollars in weaponry to help Ukraine.