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Barack Obama has met with King Salman of Saudi Arabia on
Wednesday amid increasing clamor for 28 pages of a congressional report
into 9/11 to be declassified, which is believed to show a Saudi
connection to the hijackings.
The
visit to Riyadh comes against the backdrop of increasingly strained
relations with the Saudis, who remain deeply opposed to President
Obama's outreach to Iran and skeptical of his approach to Syria.
Stepping
off the tarmac at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, Obama
was greeted on a red carpet by Prince Faisal bin Bandar bin Abdulaziz Al
Saud, the governor of Riyadh, as opposed to the king himself.
Strained ties: President Obama speaks
with King Salman bin Abdulaziz al-Saud of Saudi Arabia at the Egra
Palace in Riyadh on Wednesday
President Obama is visiting Saudi
Arabia for a meeting with Gulf leaders to talk about stability in the
region. Above, the president walks with King Salman in the Egra Palace,
after landing Wednesday morning
President Obama
smiles as he is greeted by Saudi officials, but not King Salman in a
calculated snub, at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh on
Wednesday
The president's
trip to Saudi Arabia comes amid new efforts to declassify 28 pages from
the 9/11 congressional report, which are said to show Saudi backing of
the terror attacks
Saudi
state television did not immediately air Obama's arrival, which was
unusual since right before Air Force One landed, State TV showed King
Salman greeting other senior officials from Gulf nations arriving for
the Gulf Cooperation Council summit.
Mustafa
Alani, a security analyst at the Gulf Research Center, said the
decision to send a lower ranking official to greet Mr Obama was intended
to send a clear message that they have little faith in him.
'He
will find a leadership that's not ready to believe him,' he said. 'The
Saudis had disagreements with previous presidents. Here you have deep
distrust that the president won't deliver anything.'
He
[Obama] will find a leadership that's not ready to believe him. The
Saudis had disagreements with previous presidents. Here you have deep
distrust that the president won't deliver anything
Mustafa Alani, a security analyst from the Gulf Research Center
Obama's
first stop in Saudi Arabia was a one-on-one meeting with King Salman at
Riyadh's Erga Palace on Wednesday before the six-nation GCC summit
opens on Thursday.
Under crystal chandeliers, Obama was greeted in a grand foyer at Erga Palace where they walked slowly to a reception room.
'The
American people send their greetings and we are very grateful for your
hospitality, not just for this meeting but for hosting the GCC-U.S.
summit that's taking place tomorrow,' Obama said, referring to the
six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council summit.
King
Salman offered similarly gracious words through a translator, saying:
'The feeling is mutual between us and the American people.'
This is the president's fourth visit to the kingdom since taking office.
The
talks come at a critical time in the U.S.-Saudi relationship, with 9/11
victims' families again pushing Congress for the right to sue Saudi
Arabia over the death of their loved ones.
Previous
court decisions have ruled that there is insufficient evidence to find
Saudi Arabia culpable in the terror attacks, which is why they are now
calling for the release of 28 classified pages from the 9/11
congressional report which is believed to show a stronger connection to
Saudi funding of the attacks.
President Obama will be spending the next six days in the country. This is his fourth visit while in office
This week's talks are expected to
address the Saudi-led military campaign against Shiite rebels and their
allies in neighboring Yemen. Above, the president and Saudi king at the
Erga Palace on Wednesday
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