Trump wraps up his Middle East tour with deals galore

US President Donald Trump on Friday was wrapping up his Gulf tour in Abu Dhabi after signing another raft of multibillion-dollar deals, while also securing a US$1.4 trillion investment pledge from the United Arab Emirates.

The eye-watering amounts of money in investments were accompanied also by historic overtures to Syria and renewed optimism over an Iran nuclear deal during the multi-day trip across the Gulf.

At an event to highlight business partnerships between the UAE and US companies, Trump gave himself a big pat on the back.

“I’m just thinking we have a president of the United States doing the selling,” Trump said to business leaders as they walked him through a presentation on investments that are benefitting the American economy. “You think [Joe] Biden would be doing it? I don’t think so. But I think its so important. I have to be a cheerleader for our country.”

On his first foreign tour of his second term, Trump oversaw a US$200 billion order from Qatar Airways for Boeing jets and a US$600 billion investment from Saudi Arabia – including nearly US$142 billion in weapons, which the White House described as the largest-ever arms deal.

Trump also expressed optimism over reaching a new agreement with Iran over its nuclear programme, and in a seismic diplomatic shift, decided to lift decades-long sanctions on Syria