US President Joe Biden attends the Jeddah Security and Development Summit in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, July 16, 2022. (Saudi News Agency)
JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia: President Joe Biden, speaking at a summit of Arab leaders, said Saturday that the United States "will not walk away” from the Middle East as he tries to ensure stability in a volatile part of the world and boost the global flow of oil to reverse rising gas prices.
"We will not walk away and leave a vacuum to be filled by China, Russia or Iran,” Biden said at the Jeddah Security and Development Summit. "We will seek to build on this moment with active, principled, American leadership.”
Although US forces continue to target terrorists in the region and remain deployed at bases throughout the Middle East, Biden suggested he was turning a page after the US invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan.
"Today, I’m proud to be able to say that the era of land wars in the region, wars that involved huge numbers of American forces, is not underway,” he said.
He announced $1 billion in US aid to alleviate hunger in the region.
"The future will be won by the countries that unleash the full potential of their populations," Biden said, and that includes allowing people to "question and criticize leaders without fear of reprisal.”
Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia HRH Mohammed bin Salman convened the summit. He hinted that the kingdom could pump more oil than it is currently, something Biden is hoping to see when an existing production deal among OPEC+ member countries expires in September.
After a lunch with other leaders, Biden began his trip back to Washington, flashing a thumbs-up and waving to reporters as he boarded Air Force One.
