President Joe Biden will travel to the Middle East on Wednesday in an attempt to strengthen ties with some countries and address threats posed by others. Key stops include Israel and Saudi Arabia—neither of which is without controversy.
Biden took to the pages of The Washington Post to justify the trip in advance and outline what he sees as his administration's wins in the Middle East, which he called "more stable and secure than the one [his] administration inherited 18 months ago." One of his successes, Biden wrote, has been keeping American soldiers out of conflicts: "Next week, I will be the first president to visit the Middle East since 9/11 without U.S. troops engaged in a combat mission there," he said. "It's my aim to keep it that way."
