RIYADH: SaudiArabia`stopdiplomatisinWashington to lay the groundwork for US President Donald Trump`s upcoming visit, the first foreign trip of his second term, a Saudi government source said on Wednesday.

Last month, Trump said he may visit Saudi Arabia as early as April in a reprisal of 2017, when the oil-rich, conservative kingdom was the first destination of his first term in office.

Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan arrived in Washington on Tuesday, aiming to `prepare for Trump`s visit to Riyadh`, the source close to the Saudi government said.

The source said `developments in Gaza, Yemen and Syria` were also on Prince Faisal`s agenda. The official Saudi Press Agency said Prince Faisal was set to meet his US counterpart Marco Rubio to discuss `key regional and international developments`.

In January, Saudi Arabia`s de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, promised to pile $600 billion into US trade and investments. Trump later said Saudi Arabia had agreed to `spend close to a trillion dollars... in our American companies, which to me means jobs`. Trump forged close relations with Riyadh in his first term and is expected to push Saudi Arabia towards normalising ties with Israel as a major foreign policy objective.-AFP