Biden defends Saudi Arabia trip as bid to 'strengthen a strategic partnership' in WaPo op-ed
President vowed to make Saudi Arabia a 'pariah' in 2019 debate
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}President Biden defended his upcoming trip to Saudi Arabia in an opinion piece for The Washington Post published Saturday, saying he hopes to "strengthen a strategic partnership" while also "holding true to American values."
"I know that there are many who disagree with my decision to travel to Saudi Arabia. My views on human rights are clear and long-standing, and fundamental freedoms are always on the agenda when I travel abroad, as they will be during this trip, just as they will be in Israel and the West Bank," Biden wrote.
Biden argued he has to focus on countering Russian aggression and outcompeting China. "To do these things, we have to engage directly with countries that can impact those outcomes," he wrote.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}WHITE HOUSE SAYS OIL PRODUCTION 'NOT THE FOCUS' OF CONVERSATIONS WITH SAUDI ARABIA
President Joe Biden turns to leave the podium after speaking about the end of the war in Afghanistan from the State Dining Room of the White House, Tuesday, Aug. 31, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci) (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
The president faces criticism for his plan to visit Saudi Arabia after saying during his White House campaign that he wanted to make the nation a "pariah" due to human rights abuses in the country and the killing of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
"We were going to in fact make [Saudi Arabia] pay the price, and make them, in fact, the pariah that they are," Biden said during a debate in 2019.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The president argued in The Washington Post op-ed that Saudi Arabia helped unify the Gulf Cooperation Council, which is made up of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. He also said the country was working with his experts to "stabilize oil markets."
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President Joe Biden speaks at a Memorial Day event at Veterans Memorial Park at the Delaware Memorial Bridge in New Castle, Del., Sunday, May 30, 2021. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky) (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)
White House National Security Council official John Kirby told Fox News' Martha McCallum recently that Biden would not shy away from discussing human rights concerns during his visit.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"[A]ll around the world, when the president meets with leaders and counterparts, he's not afraid, nor will he ever shy away from, talking about our concerns over human rights," Kirby said.
Biden also acknowledged the many ongoing challenges within the region and said they must be addressed.
The issues, Biden said, include "Iran’s nuclear program and support for proxy groups, the Syrian civil war, food security crises exacerbated by Russia’s war against Ukraine, terrorist groups still operating in a number of countries, political gridlock in Iraq, Libya and Lebanon, and human rights standards that remain behind much of the world."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}U.S. President Joe Biden delivers remarks on the grounds of Morehouse College and Clark Atlanta University in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S., January 11, 2022. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst (REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst)
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During a White House briefing in early June, press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said that oil production wouldn't be the focus of the meetings with Saudi Arabia.
"That’s something for OPEC to decide, clearly. Saudi Arabia chairs that, and so, we just want to be very clear on that," she said.