US President Joe Biden will start his first presidential trip to the Middle East in Israel today, Wednesday.
The tour will be about efforts to persuade Gulf allies to increase oil, and an attempt to bring Israel and Saudi Arabia closer.
Biden will spend two days in Jerusalem for talks with Israeli leaders before meeting Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Friday in the occupied West Bank.
After that, he will take a direct flight from Israel to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on Friday for talks with Saudi officials and attend a summit of Gulf allies.
US officials say that the US president's first visit to the Middle East as president could result in further steps toward normalizing relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia.
Biden's trip aims to enhance regional stability, deepen Israel's integration in the region, and counter Iranian influence, and the aggressiveness of Russia and China.
The United States has always had a great commitment to Israel. However, Biden's relationship with the Middle Eastern country has been strained by his attempts to restart a 2015 deal with Iran that was aimed at curbing its nuclear activities.
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