Khalid bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud

Khalid bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud
Khalid bin Salman in 2018
Born 1988 (age 29–30)
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Spouse HRH Princess Nora bint Mohammed bin Mishal bin Abdulaziz al Saud
Issue HRH Prince Abdulaziz bin Khalid bin Salman bin Abdulaziz al Saud
HRH Princess Dana bint Khalid bin Salman bin Abdulaziz al Saud
Full name
Khalid bin Salman bin Abdulaziz bin Abdul Rahman bin Faisal bin Turki bin Abdullah bin Mohammed bin Saud
House House of Saud
Father King Salman
Mother Fahda bint Falah bin Sultan bin Hathleen al-Ajmi
Religion Hanbali Sunni Islam

Khalid bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud (born 1988) is a son of King Salman of Saudi Arabia, and a younger full brother of the Crown Prince, Mohammad bin Salman and Prince Turki. In 2017, he was appointed as Saudi Arabia's Ambassador to the United States.[1]

Education

Prince Khalid earned a bachelor's degree in Aviation Sciences from King Faisal Air Academy, and continued his education in the United States. He obtained a Certificate from Harvard University in their Senior Executives in National and International Security program. He also studied Advanced Electronic Warfare in Paris, France. Prince Khalid was enrolled in Georgetown University to pursue his higher education in the University's Master of Arts in Security Studies program. Due to various official duties and tasks, his studies were postponed prior to his appointment as ambassador to the United States.[2]

Military career

After graduating from the King Faisal Air Academy, Prince Khalid joined the Royal Saudi Air Force. He commenced his aviation career by flying T-6 Texan and T-38 aircraft at Columbus Air Force Base in Mississippi. He then started flying F-15 S and was also appointed as a Tactical Intelligence Officer in addition to his duties as an F-15 S pilot with the 92nd Squadron of the RSAF 3rd Wing at King Abdulaziz Air Base in Dhahran.[3][4]

Prince Khalid has accumulated nearly 1,000 flying hours and carried out air missions against ISIS within the International Coalition's efforts. He also participated in Operation Decisive Storm and Operation Restoring Hope by flying missions over Yemen.[2] Prince Khalid was awarded medals including: South Shield Medal, the Battle Medal, the Excellence Medal, and the Abdullah's Sword Medal.[3]

Prince Khalid has trained extensively with the American Armed Forces both in the United States and in Saudi Arabia, including his training at Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada. A back injury prohibited Prince Khalid from flying, and he worked as an officer at the office of the Minister of Defense.

Upon completion of his military career, he was appointed as a Senior Civilian Advisor at the Ministry of Defense. By late 2016, Prince Khalid moved to the United States where he worked as an Advisor at the Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia in Washington. In April, 2017 Prince Khalid became the tenth Saudi Ambassador to the United States since 1945.[2]

Diplomatic career

Prince Khalid (left) greets US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in 2018

Following his appointment as Ambassador to the United States in April 2017, Prince Khalid has focused on strengthening Saudi-U.S. bilateral relations and promoting robust ties between the two countries at all levels of government and society.[5]

In August and September 2017, Prince Khalid undertook his first multi-state tour of the United States, visiting Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada, Silicon Valley, Dallas, Houston, and St. Louis to underline his commitment to reaching out beyond the beltway and strengthening the Saudi-U.S. relationship in all areas.[1][6]

In March 2018, Prince Khalid appeared on CNN in discussion with Wolf Blitzer to preview Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s trip to the United States. In the interview, he asserted: “We will continue to work with our allies in the United States and in the world to increase our economic cooperation, to increase our security cooperation and to serve our mutual interests and face our mutual threats.”[7]

Prince Khalid authored a column in the Washington Post, published on March 19, 2018, that outlined the ways in which the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is embracing change, and how the Saudi-U.S. relationship can be strengthened as a result of this transformation.[8]

As part of the seven-city tour around the United States, Prince Khalid joined Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to meet with a number of American political, economic and social leaders in Washington, Boston, New York, Seattle, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Houston.[9][10] Prince Khalid attended meetings with President Donald J. Trump, members of the administration and congressional leaders on both sides of the aisle.[9]

Prince Khalid participated in meetings with former leaders – including President George H.W. Bush, President Bill Clinton, Secretary of State John Kerry and Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta, along with current representatives of the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council, including U.S. Ambassador Nikki Haley.[11][12][13][14]

On the economic side, Prince Khalid joined the Crown Prince in meeting with entertainment and development leaders, discussing potential collaboration with executives from Warner Bros., Disney and Magic Leap.[15] The Ambassador also joined a tour of Apple headquarters in Silicon Valley, exploring different avenues of cooperation between both sides.[16][17]

Personal life

Prince Khalid is married to HRH Princess Nora bint Mohammed bin Mishal bin Abdulaziz al Saud, and has two children, HRH Prince Abdulaziz bin Khalid bin Salman bin Abdulaziz al Saud and HRH Princess Dana bint Khalid bin Salman bin Abdulaziz al Saud.

Ancestry

References

  1. 1 2 Rogers, Katie (September 12, 2017). "He's 28, a Prince and Representing a Kingdom: Meet Washington's Newest Ambassador". The New York Times. Retrieved September 14, 2017.
  2. 1 2 3 Ismaeel Naar (2017-04-23). "Who is Prince Khaled bin Salman Saudi Arabia's new ambassador to the US?". Retrieved 2017-09-30.
  3. 1 2 "Khalid bin Salman bin Abdulaziz al Saud". Saudi Press Agency. 2017-04-24. Retrieved 2017-09-30.
  4. ↑ "Ambassador Prince Khalid bin Salman bin Abdulaziz". Retrieved 2017-09-30.
  5. ↑ "Prince Khalid bin Salman Officially Begins Assignment as Saudi Ambassador to the U.S". Retrieved 2018-05-29.
  6. ↑ "Saudi Ambassador to US Stresses Strong Defense Ties between Riyadh, Washington". Retrieved 2018-05-29.
  7. ↑ "Saudi Ambassador Khalid bin Salman in his first interview on US TV with Wolf Blitzer". Retrieved 2018-05-29.
  8. ↑ "Saudi Arabia embraces change – and the United States can help". Retrieved 2018-05-29.
  9. 1 2 "Mohammed bin Salman welcomed at White House by Donald Trump". Retrieved 2018-05-29.
  10. ↑ "Saudi Arabia's crown prince meets with US religious leaders, urges tolerance". 2018-03-28. Retrieved 2018-05-29.
  11. ↑ "His Royal Highness Meets with 42nd President Bill Clinton, Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia". Retrieved 2018-05-29.
  12. ↑ "Crown Prince Meets with Former Secretary of State John Kerry, Embassy of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia". Retrieved 2018-05-29.
  13. ↑ "Crown Prince meets with Former Secretary of Defense Panetta". Retrieved 2018-05-29.
  14. ↑ "Crown Prince Meets with Representatives of Permanent Members of UNSC". Retrieved 2018-05-29.
  15. ↑ "Crown Prince Meets with Entertainment and Development Leaders". Retrieved 2018-05-29.
  16. ↑ "Saudi crown prince visits Google headquarters in Silicon Valley". Retrieved 2018-05-29.
  17. ↑ "Saudi Crown Prince talks joint projects with Apple's Tim Cook in Silicon Valley". Retrieved 2018-05-29.
  18. ↑ "Royal Family Directory". www.datarabia.com. Archived from the original on 18 March 2016. Retrieved 22 June 2017.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.