Joel C. Rosenberg's Blog - President arrives in Saudi Arabia to meet with Arab & Muslim leaders. Here’s the latest, including his itinerary.

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President arrives in Saudi Arabia to meet with Arab & Muslim leaders. Here’s the latest, including his itinerary. by joelcrosenberg (Washington, D.C.) -- No one would have predicted that the candidate who called for a "Muslim ban" would, upon becoming President of the United States, make Saudi Arabia the first stop on his first international trip. Or that he would turn the trip into an opportunity to meet with dozens of Arab and Muslim leaders from all over the world. That said, the President is absolutely right to work hard on building American relationships and alliances throughout the Muslim world. He's also right to deliver a major address on the threat posed by radical Islamism and the need for all Muslims to strongly oppose and counter the radicals. To his credit, he will then travel to Israel -- and specifically to Jerusalem -- to strengthen U.S.-Israeli ties, and explore ways of making peace between Israel and the Palestinians. Then he heads to Rome to meet with the Pope, and onward to meet with NATO leaders. No other President has specifically designed a foreign trip -- especially his first -- to reach out to Muslim, Jewish and Christian leaders. In the days ahead, I hope to provide analysis of his trip, his meetings and his speeches. For now, let's be praying for the President's safety and for the trip to have a positive impact. Here's what we know so far. ITINERARY: Friday: President departed Washington Saturday: Arrive in Saudi Arabia, meet with the King, dinner with royal family Sunday: President to meet with leaders of the Gulf Cooperation Council, including Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates; meet with Islamic leaders from all over the world, including the leaders of Egypt, Jordan and Indonesia; and deliver major address on threats to the region from radical Islamists Monday: President arrives in Israel, meets with President Reuven Rivlin, meets with Prime Minister Netanyahu, visits the Western Wall and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, has dinner with the Netanyahus Tuesday: President meets with Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas, lays a wreath at Israel's Holocaust memorial museum, and delivers a major address at the Israel Museum Wednesday: President meets with Pope Francis in Rome, then flies to Brussels Thursday: President participates in NATO Summit. Friday: President is in Sicily, Italy, participating in G7 Summit Saturday: G7 Summit, then return to Washington NEWS COVERAGE: President Trump’s Schedule for His First Foreign Trip (New York Times) Trump Receives Regal Welcome in Saudi Arabia (AP) Saudi leaders hail Trump visit as ‘reset of regional order’ (UK Guardian) Trump excerpts show moderate tone on Islam (Politico) Trump signs Saudi defense, economic deals (Politico) Trump to summon Muslim nations to confront ‘the crisis of Islamist extremism’ (Washington Post) ANALYSIS BY MIDEAST EXPERTS: Trump can set big things in motion on his Mideast trip: It's an opportunity to begin to correct our flawed foreign policy. -- Robert Satloff, Washington Institute for Near East Policy A Mideast peace gameplan for Trump -- Amb. Dennis Ross & Dennis Makovsky —————— Without Warning — my new thriller about ISIS operatives launching catastrophic terrorist attacks inside the U.S. using chemical weapons captured in Syria, and the hunt for the ISIS leader by a secret coalition of Israel, Egypt, Jordan and the UAE — is now available in hardcover, e-book and audio formats from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, CBD, Lifeway, and your favorite general market and Christian bookstores. To order online, please click here. Pastors and ministry leaders:  to begin planning your own tour of Israel in July 2018 that allows you to bring your people to the Epicenter Prayer Summit, please click here. Lay people: to learn more about The Joshua Fund’s next tour of Israel and attend the Epicenter Prayer Summit in Jerusalem — and to register while there is still space — please click here. ——————— Would you like to make a secure, tax deductible investment in The Joshua Fund (www.joshuafund.net)? This is the non-profit organization that my wife, Lynn, and I founded in 2006 to educate and mobilize Christians to bless Israel and her neighbors in the name of Jesus, to care for the poor and needy in Israel (both Jews and Arabs) with food and other humanitarian relief, care for Holocaust survivors, care for Syrian and Iraqi refugees, and strengthen the Church in Israel, Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Iraq and Egypt. The Joshua Fund is a member in good standing of the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability. Please click here to learn more. Thanks so much! Click here to read the 2016 Joshua Fund Donor Report — and watch the short videos, as well Subscribe (free) to the RSS feed (click here) and receive every new posting on this blog directly via email.