Trump Says Designating Saudi Arabia Major Non-NATO Ally 

US President Donald Trump greets Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, during a dinner at the White House in Washington, DC, US, November 18, 2025. (Reuters)
US President Donald Trump greets Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, during a dinner at the White House in Washington, DC, US, November 18, 2025. (Reuters)
TT

Trump Says Designating Saudi Arabia Major Non-NATO Ally 

US President Donald Trump greets Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, during a dinner at the White House in Washington, DC, US, November 18, 2025. (Reuters)
US President Donald Trump greets Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, during a dinner at the White House in Washington, DC, US, November 18, 2025. (Reuters)

US President Donald Trump said Tuesday he was designating Saudi Arabia as a major non-NATO ally, as he hosted Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, for a gala dinner at the White House.

"Tonight, I'm pleased to announce that we're taking our military cooperation to even greater heights by formally designating Saudi Arabia as a major non-NATO ally, which is something that is very important to them," Trump said.

"And I'm just telling you now for the first time, because they wanted to keep a little secret for tonight," Trump said of the designation, which only 19 other countries have previously received.

The move aims to elevate the military relationship between the US and Saudi Arabia. 

The designation is largely symbolic but provides foreign partners with certain benefits in the areas of defense trade and security cooperation. 

Countries with the designation include Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Columbia, Japan and New Zealand, among others. 



Royal Saudi Naval Forces Floats First Combat Ship in US under Tuwaiq Project

The Royal Saudi Naval Forces (RSNF) floated the His Majesty King Saud ship in the US state of Wisconsin. (SPA)
The Royal Saudi Naval Forces (RSNF) floated the His Majesty King Saud ship in the US state of Wisconsin. (SPA)
TT

Royal Saudi Naval Forces Floats First Combat Ship in US under Tuwaiq Project

The Royal Saudi Naval Forces (RSNF) floated the His Majesty King Saud ship in the US state of Wisconsin. (SPA)
The Royal Saudi Naval Forces (RSNF) floated the His Majesty King Saud ship in the US state of Wisconsin. (SPA)

The Royal Saudi Naval Forces (RSNF) floated the His Majesty King Saud ship, the first vessel under the Tuwaiq Project, in the US state of Wisconsin, reported the Saudi Press Agency on Tuesday.

The project includes the construction of four multi-mission combat ships.

The ceremony was attended by Chief of Naval Staff Lieutenant General Mohammed Al-Ghuraibi, in the presence of a number of senior officers and officials from Saudi Arabia and the US, as well as representatives of Lockheed Martin, a leading defense and military industries company, and Fincantieri, which specializes in the construction of advanced military and naval vessels.

Al-Ghuraibi underscored the unlimited support enjoyed by the Armed Forces in general and the RSNF from the Saudi leadership, which has contributed to achieving accomplishments in modernization and development.

The Tuwaiq Project is one of the key and strategic projects in the development journey of the RSNF, embodying the Kingdom’s direction toward building a modern and professional naval force based on the latest military technologies, alongside advanced training and qualification programs for its personnel, he added.

The project boosts the readiness of the RSNF to protect the Kingdom’s strategic interests and secure vital maritime routes, he remarked, revealing that the project’s ships are equipped with the latest advanced combat systems that enable them to carry out various naval warfare missions and engage aerial, surface, and subsurface targets.


MWL Secretary-General, UN Chief Meet in Riyadh

Muslim World League (MWL) Secretary-General and Organization of Muslim Scholars Chairman Sheikh Dr. Mohammed Al-Issa and United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres meet in Riyadh on Tuesday. (SPA)
Muslim World League (MWL) Secretary-General and Organization of Muslim Scholars Chairman Sheikh Dr. Mohammed Al-Issa and United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres meet in Riyadh on Tuesday. (SPA)
TT

MWL Secretary-General, UN Chief Meet in Riyadh

Muslim World League (MWL) Secretary-General and Organization of Muslim Scholars Chairman Sheikh Dr. Mohammed Al-Issa and United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres meet in Riyadh on Tuesday. (SPA)
Muslim World League (MWL) Secretary-General and Organization of Muslim Scholars Chairman Sheikh Dr. Mohammed Al-Issa and United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres meet in Riyadh on Tuesday. (SPA)

Muslim World League (MWL) Secretary-General and Organization of Muslim Scholars Chairman Sheikh Dr. Mohammed Al-Issa held talks in Riyadh on Tuesday with United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres.

Meeting on the sidelines of the 11th Global Forum of the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC), they discussed the importance of continuing to strengthen friendship and cooperation among nations and peoples.

Guterres was briefed on the MWL's efforts in this regard through its purposeful and constructive dialogues across the world, praising its initiatives and programs that advance the concept of preventive peace.

Dr. Al-Issa expressed, on behalf of the Muslim peoples under the league’s umbrella, his appreciation for the honorable positions Guterres has taken on just causes, especially the war on Gaza and the Palestinian cause.


Saudi Arabia, US Discuss Means to Boost Humanitarian Cooperation

Advisor at the Saudi Royal Court and Supervisor General of the King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center (KSrelief) Dr. Abdullah Al Rabeeah and US Senior Advisor for Arab and African Affairs Massad Boulos meet in Riyadh on Tuesday. (SPA)
Advisor at the Saudi Royal Court and Supervisor General of the King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center (KSrelief) Dr. Abdullah Al Rabeeah and US Senior Advisor for Arab and African Affairs Massad Boulos meet in Riyadh on Tuesday. (SPA)
TT

Saudi Arabia, US Discuss Means to Boost Humanitarian Cooperation

Advisor at the Saudi Royal Court and Supervisor General of the King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center (KSrelief) Dr. Abdullah Al Rabeeah and US Senior Advisor for Arab and African Affairs Massad Boulos meet in Riyadh on Tuesday. (SPA)
Advisor at the Saudi Royal Court and Supervisor General of the King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center (KSrelief) Dr. Abdullah Al Rabeeah and US Senior Advisor for Arab and African Affairs Massad Boulos meet in Riyadh on Tuesday. (SPA)

Advisor at the Saudi Royal Court and Supervisor General of the King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center (KSrelief) Dr. Abdullah Al Rabeeah held talks in Riyadh on Tuesday with US Senior Advisor for Arab and African Affairs Massad Boulos and his accompanying delegation.

They discussed issues related to relief and humanitarian affairs, as well as ways to boost cooperation and international partnership between Saudi Arabia and the United States in providing humanitarian and relief services to countries in need.

Boulos commended the humanitarian and relief efforts undertaken by the Kingdom through KSrelief to support needy and affected nations and peoples worldwide.