US President Donald Trump will travel to the UAE, Qatar and Saudi Arabia on his first formal overseas visit since taking office this year.
The trip will take place from May 13-16, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said. This Friday, Mr Trump will travel to Rome for the funeral of Pope Francis, who died early on Monday.
"The President looks to strengthen the ties between the United States and these countries which he will be visiting," Ms Leavitt said on Tuesday. "He'll be having many bilateral meetings and talks."
Late last month, Mr Trump said he was likely to visit the Middle East in the months ahead.
Tuesday's confirmation comes after the US announced and then temporarily paused a series of tariffs on all trading partners, including the UAE, Qatar and Saudi Arabia. Mr Trump has said the levies are aimed at levelling the global trade field and will encourage investment in the US.
When he first raised the possibility of a regional trip, he said he had visited Saudi Arabia during his first term in the White House after Riyadh made $450 billion worth of investments in US companies. He said Saudi Arabia has this time promised to more than double that amount with a pledge that amounts to nearly $1 trillion.
“I view it as jobs more than anything else and now we’re close to a trillion dollars,” Mr Trump said. “So, it’s more than double the number that we did when I first came to office.”
The trip is expected to feature discussions on tariffs as well as other economic issues, and could also touch on the Israel-Gaza war. Mr Trump has vowed to bring peace to the Middle East and his regional envoy Steve Witkoff has been actively engaged in ceasefire talks.
Earlier on Tuesday, Mr Trump said he had spoken to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about several issues, including trade and Iran, and that the two leaders see eye to eye.
“The call went very well – we are on the same side of every issue,” Mr Trump wrote in a post on TruthSocial.
Mr Trump has said the US would take military action against Iran if it does not agree to a new deal that would curb its nuclear activities. Israel is opposed to a new negotiated deal between Washington and Tehran, and wants to see strikes on Iran's nuclear facilities, preferably with US support.
"It was a good call," Ms Leavitt said. "They spoke particularly about Iran, the negotiations that are under way with Iran in the United States, and the President had made it very clear repeatedly, but I'll reiterate, there is no daylight between the United States of America and the state of Israel."
Mr Trump has said that he first wants to see if talks with Iran can be successful before making a decision on military action. Talks are expected to continue at the weekend.
