Ass Donald Trump As he prepares to return to the White House, the company that bears his name is expanding its global footprint.
Trump’s son Eric Trump, executive vice president of the Trump Organization, formally announced Wednesday that the family’s real estate company is partnering with Saudi Arabia’s Dar Al Arkan real estate firm to launch Trump Tower in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
Earlier this week, the Trump Organization announced that it had leased its name to two projects in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, increasing the company’s role in a part of the world that is central to United States foreign policy.
“We’re doing projects in Jeddah, we’re doing projects in Oman, we’re doing projects in Riyadh, we’re doing projects all over the region,” Eric Trump said this week at a cryptocurrency conference in the United Arab Emirates. .
The approach follows a profitable business strategy the Trumps have embraced for decades: making money licensing their name to the projects rather than building or manufacturing them. The recently announced projects are a significant expansion for the Trump Organization in Saudi Arabia, where they currently operate one golf course and are developing a second.
“We are delighted to strengthen our relationship with the Trump Organization and expand our portfolio by offering premium properties to redefine Saudi Arabia’s high-growth real estate market,” said Dar Global CEO Ziad El Chaar.
Trump was later criticized for his close relationship with Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and his advocacy during his first term. The murder of 2018 Saudi dissident and Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi by Saudi agents. The Saudi government and Mohammed bin Salman have denied that the prince ordered the killing.
In this Dec. 20, 2016 file photo, the flag flies over a green dotted with villas at the Trump International Golf Club in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
Kamran Jebreili/AP, FILE
Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth has invested billions with Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner’s private equity firm.
During his first term, Trump vowed that his company would not take on foreign business deals, but it is unclear whether the president-elect will make a similar vow when he returns to the White House.
“Should I stop all expansion? I don’t know what the answer is. I tried to do everything right in 2016 and got very little credit,” Eric Trump said. The Wall Street Journal in October, expressing confidence that the company will avoid conflicts.
A representative for Trump’s transition team did not respond to ABC News’ request for comment.
In the months leading up to the election, the Trump Organization has ramped up its foreign business, including agreeing to manage and brand a $500 million hotel and golf course in the Middle Eastern country of Oman and licensing its name for a Trump Tower in Dubai. United Arab Emirates.
“The UAE is a developer’s biggest dream because they never say no to anything,” Eric Trump said at a crypto conference earlier this week.
