Tel Aviv: President of the United States Joe Biden During their visits to Israel and Saudi Arabia this week will try to minimize direct contact, such as handshake, as part of increased COVID-19 precautions, white House officials said on Wednesday.
Could enable explicit policy changes Biden To avoid being photographed shaking hands with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, better known as MBS, this weekend.
“We are now in a phase of the pandemic where we are seeking to reduce contact and increase masking … to reduce the spread,” US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan told reporters on Air Force One on a flight to Israel when asked about reports that Biden would not shake hands on the trip.
“I cannot speak to every moment and every conversation and every movement. This is the general principle that we are applying,” he said.
Biden, who has called the Saudi government “tyranny” for his role in the 2018 killing of Washington Post journalist and political rival Jamal Khashoggi, is reluctantly meeting the crown prince, who during his stop this week by US intelligence believes was responsible for the murder. were behind. Saudi Arab.
“The White House is desperately trying to avoid a photo of Biden shaking hands with the Crown Prince, especially after a Washington Post editorial condemned the meeting with MBS. COVID is a simple excuse, but it is not the fact of the meeting.” That will change,” said Bruce Riedel, foreign policy fellow at the Brookings Institution.
Biden left for Israel late Tuesday after shaking hands several times late in the evening and on the White House South Lawn during a congressional picnic.
Biden punched the Israeli delegation upon arrival, but later spoke closely with Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid as the two leaders stood shoulder to shoulder with arms behind each other’s backs.
The US President shook hands with former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, now Leader of the Opposition, and Defense Secretary Benny Gantz.
The White House on Tuesday urged Americans over the age of 50 to get a vaccination booster against COVID-19 as the rapidly spreading omicron The BA.5 subvariant takes hold across the United States.
Biden will attend a bilateral meeting with the Saudi king and crown prince on Friday, but in recent weeks Biden has sought to push for a meeting with a broader group of Gulf leaders.
White House spokeswoman Karin Jean-Pierre said no news conference was scheduled during Biden’s visit to Saudi Arabia.
Could enable explicit policy changes Biden To avoid being photographed shaking hands with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, better known as MBS, this weekend.
“We are now in a phase of the pandemic where we are seeking to reduce contact and increase masking … to reduce the spread,” US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan told reporters on Air Force One on a flight to Israel when asked about reports that Biden would not shake hands on the trip.
“I cannot speak to every moment and every conversation and every movement. This is the general principle that we are applying,” he said.
Biden, who has called the Saudi government “tyranny” for his role in the 2018 killing of Washington Post journalist and political rival Jamal Khashoggi, is reluctantly meeting the crown prince, who during his stop this week by US intelligence believes was responsible for the murder. were behind. Saudi Arab.
“The White House is desperately trying to avoid a photo of Biden shaking hands with the Crown Prince, especially after a Washington Post editorial condemned the meeting with MBS. COVID is a simple excuse, but it is not the fact of the meeting.” That will change,” said Bruce Riedel, foreign policy fellow at the Brookings Institution.
Biden left for Israel late Tuesday after shaking hands several times late in the evening and on the White House South Lawn during a congressional picnic.
Biden punched the Israeli delegation upon arrival, but later spoke closely with Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid as the two leaders stood shoulder to shoulder with arms behind each other’s backs.
The US President shook hands with former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, now Leader of the Opposition, and Defense Secretary Benny Gantz.
The White House on Tuesday urged Americans over the age of 50 to get a vaccination booster against COVID-19 as the rapidly spreading omicron The BA.5 subvariant takes hold across the United States.
Biden will attend a bilateral meeting with the Saudi king and crown prince on Friday, but in recent weeks Biden has sought to push for a meeting with a broader group of Gulf leaders.
White House spokeswoman Karin Jean-Pierre said no news conference was scheduled during Biden’s visit to Saudi Arabia.