Saudi Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman leaves for US to meet Trump

The deputy crown prince of Saudi Arabia Mohammed bin Salman has left the country on a working visit to the US starting on Thursday (16 March), the Royal Court said in a statement carried by state news agency SPA.

The statement, released on Monday, added that during the visit, Prince Mohammed, who is also the defence minister of Saudi Arabia, would meet with the US President Donald Trump and other officials to "discuss reinforcing bilateral relations and review regional issues of mutual interest".

According to reports, the meeting between the powerful son of Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz and Trump would be the first since the Republican leader joined office in January.

Trump had earlier talked to the prince on phone soon after he joined office and had agreed to support safe zones in Syria and Yemen, a White House statement said.

Meanwhile, King Salman is on his month-long trip through Asia. The king is currently in Japan and is scheduled to meet Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, where he is expected to seek Japan's cooperation in boosting private-sector investment in the middle-eastern country.

King Salman's visit to Japan comes after Prince Mohammed, in August 2016, agreed with Abe to work together on a set of reforms called "Vision 2030," which could help Japan in achieving economic benefits.

Also, Saudi Arabia, the largest supplier of crude oil to Japan, is aiming structural reforms to condense its economy's heavy dependence on oil amid a fall in crude prices.