President-elect Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, met with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman during a visit to Saudi Arabia on Wednesday, according to two sources briefed on the meeting. This was the first meeting between MBS and a representative of the incoming Trump administration since the November elections.

Trump appointed Witkoff, a close friend and confidant, as his administration’s Middle East envoy with the clear goal of securing a “mega-deal” with Saudi Arabia—an initiative that began during the Biden administration.

Trump reportedly wants the deal to include a historic peace agreement between Israel and Saudi Arabia, as well as progress toward resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, according to sources familiar with his thinking.

“I want a long-lasting peace. I’m not saying that’s a very likely scenario … I want a peace where we don’t have an October 7 in another three years. I’d like to see everybody be happy,” Trump told Time magazine earlier this week. Witkoff’s trip was part of a series of meetings Trump advisors have held with Middle Eastern leaders in recent weeks.

One source said Witkoff and MBS discussed US-Saudi relations, the war in Gaza, the possibility of normalizing ties with Israel, and other regional issues. Earlier this week, Witkoff attended a crypto conference in the UAE. A few months ago, Witkoff and Trump co-founded a cryptocurrency company called World Liberty Financial, Inc.

During his visit to Abu Dhabi, Witkoff met with the UAE’s National Security Advisor, Sheikh Tahnoun bin Zayed, and discussed the war in Gaza, the revolution in Syria, and other regional topics, according to two sources.

Trump’s Middle East advisor and son-in-law, Massad Boules, was also in the region this week and met with Qatar’s Prime Minister in Doha, a source familiar with the meeting said.

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