In a wide-ranging interview, O’Donnell asked bin Salman about the reforms he’s bringing to Saudi society, including emancipating women.
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Prince Abdulaziz was welcomed by Chief of Presidential Protocol Robert Borje and Saudi Arabian Ambassador to the Philippines Abdullah bin Nasser al Bussairy.
“Is this also about sending a message that, as we say in America, there’s a new sheriff in town?”
When asked if women were equal to men, the Crown Prince said: “Absolutely”.
The report comes as the Crown Prince arrives for a meeting with President Trump today with U.S. -Saudi relations ‘at an all-time high, ‘ according to Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir, a former ambassador to Washington. They said the king has told people around him that he misses her and apparently does not know her true location or status.
Sunday’s interview comes on the eve of the crown prince’s two-week visit to the USA, which begins on Monday, and as part of a Saudi public relations effort to win over the American public, several political analysts have said.
The partners announced major contracts worth more than $380 billion – including $110 billion for the sale of American arms to Saudi Arabia, aimed at countering what they see as a threat from Iran and radical Islamists. “I’m a member of the ruling family that existed for hundreds of years before the founding of Saudi Arabia”.
The 9/11 attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people in the United States tested the US-Saudi relationship, with 15 of the 19 Al-Qaeda attackers from Saudi Arabia.
The Russian veto of the United Nations resolution in February outraged USA officials, who say there was a mountain of evidence showing that Iran had provided missiles to the Houthis, the insurgent group fighting a Saudi-led military intervention that seeks to restore the Yemeni government. In the Middle East, things are even more tense.
During his interview, the young crown prince referred to Iran as “not a rival to Saudi Arabia”.
Addressing the role of 15 Saudi nationals’ in 9/11, the crown prince explained that “Osama Bin Laden wanted to create a schism between the Middle East and the West, between Saudi Arabia and the United States of America”, adding that “he indeed succeeded in creating this schism in the West”. The crown prince may seek movie production in Saudi Arabia after the PIF also recently invested $400 million or 10% of Endeavour PLC, the Los Angeles talent agency. “This is the real example and the true model”. One goal of the operation, which was marked by physical abuse according to a New York Times investigation, was to recover an amount exceeding $100 billion.
Excerpts from the interview, which will air in full on CBS on Sunday, came as the Trump administration threatens to end the Iran nuclear deal, which could leave Tehran free to advance its development of atomic weapons.
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“The visit of the Saudi Crown Prince was a great pleasure, and I was very impressed by his personality and smile, and his knowledge and understanding of history and current events”, the Pope said.
