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There is no business comparable to the US defense business, and no audience roars louder in approval than Saudi Arabia.
On Tuesday, President Donald Trump Saudi Arabia is expected to strike several deals with Saudi Arabia’s powerful Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, a visit that could result in billions more in U.S. weapons flowing to one of the world’s most prolific importers of military hardware.
TRUMP will host Saudi Arabia’s powerful crown prince at the White House this week
Trump told reporters at the White House on Monday that the U.S. will likely move forward with a deal to sell F-35 jets to Saudi Arabia.
The crown jewel of Lockheed Martin’s portfolio, the F-35 is among the world’s most advanced fighter aircraft and one of the most coveted symbols of U.S. military might.
Lockheed Martin’s F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter is available in three variants. (Samuel King Jr./US Air Force)
The oil-rich monarchy of Saudi Arabia is one of America’s most important strategic partners in the Middle East and one of the US defense industry’s most reliable customers.
For Washington, the partnership means billions defense revenue and an important ally in the Gulf. For Riyadh, it is a link to the world’s most advanced military technology and a symbol of its ambition to stand shoulder to shoulder with the world’s military powers in an unstable region.
TRUMP will host Saudi Arabia’s powerful crown prince at the White House this week
US President Donald Trump and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman met in May during Trump’s first state visit of his second term. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)
According to a report from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, Saudi Arabia was the top buyer of American weapons between 2020 and 2024, accounting for 12% of all U.S. arms exports, followed by Ukraine (9.3%) and Japan (8.8%). The US was also by far the kingdom’s main supplier, supplying 74% of all Saudi arms imports during this period.
This level of spending underlines Saudi Arabia regional military ambitions, but globally it is the US that dominates by an extraordinary margin.
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With $997 billion in defense spending in 2024, the U.S. far outpaced all other nations and invested more than three times what China, the world’s second-largest spender, spent on its military.
Beyond defense spending, the US is also the world leader in arms exports, accounting for nearly half of all major weapons sold worldwide between 2020 and 2024. In total, 162 countries purchased major weapons systems, but only five importers, Ukraine, India, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, accounted for 35% of global imports, showing how concentrated the global arms trade remains.
The crown prince serves as the kingdom’s powerful deputy to his 89-year-old father, King Salman. Widely regarded as Saudi Arabia As de facto ruler, he manages almost all day-to-day state affairs and often represents the kingdom at international summits and diplomatic meetings.
Tuesday’s meetings mark the crown prince’s first visit to the White House in more than seven years.
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The two last met in May, when Trump made his first state visit of his second term in Riyadh. He was greeted with one Fighter jet escortan honor guard with golden swords and a parade of Arabian horses flank his limousine.
It was a scene that captured the enduring spectacle of the U.S.-Saudi relationship, a partnership as opulent as it is strategic that remains crucial to both nations’ ambitions.