Rubio, Prince Faisal discuss Middle East developments in phone call

Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio discussed regional developments in a phone call on Monday, the Saudi Foreign Ministry said.

According to a readout, the call also touched on bilateral ties between Washington and Riyadh and the strategic partnership between the two.

The US and Saudi Arabia have been working closely on several files as ties between the two have improved since the Trump administration took office. Joint efforts have seen a potential nuclear standoff between India and Pakistan averted, and the two countries have also worked on de-escalating fighting between Russia and Ukraine as well as the fighting in Sudan.

US President Donald Trump made his first official state visit to Saudi Arabia earlier this year. His first phone call with a foreign leader after taking office was with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.