BY JEFF MASON
RIYADH Fri Mar 28, 2014 4:31pm GMT
(Reuters) - President Barack Obama, making his first visit to Saudi Arabia since 2009, began a meeting with King Abdullah on Friday that White House officials said would focus on Gulf security, Syria, Iran, Middle East peace and Egypt.
The elderly king, accompanied by a number of senior princes, had what appeared to be an oxygen tube connected to his nose at the start of his meeting at his desert farm at Rawdat Khuraim northeast of the capital Riyadh, witnesses said.
Obama and King Abdullah said in plush chairs and talked to each other through translators. The king, dressed in formal robes and head covering, appeared alert and engaged.
The U.S. delegation seated at Obama's side included U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and National Security Adviser Susan Rice. The leaders made no public statements.
Saudi Arabia wants the United States to shift its position on support for Syrian rebels, particularly Washington's reluctance to supply them with surface-to-air missiles, sometimes known as manpads.
http://uk.reuters.com/article/2014/03/28/us-obama-saudi-idUKBREA2R15O20140328
