Saudi Arabia gave Donald Trump 83 gifts including swords, daggers and artwork of himself
Presents to the President include two robes lined with fur - one from a cheetah and the other from a rare white tiger
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Saudi Arabia gave Donald Trump 83 gifts including an artwork of himself and a robe lined with cheetah fur during his state visit to the kingdom, it has emerged.
Mr Trump made his first foreign visit as president to the Gulf state in May, where he lavished praise on the "magnificent" country during a keynote address.
And the response to a Freedom of Information request lodged by The Daily Beast revealed the White House accepted gifts also included a wool robe lined with white tiger fur, nine pairs of leather sandals and a number of swords, daggers and holsters.
A number of traditional Saudi Arabian outfits and head scarves also featured among the gifts
The trip proved controversial after the US President failed to address Saudi Arabia’s record on human rights in his keynote speech, instead saying: "We are not here to tell other people how to live, what to do, who to be, or how to worship."
During the visit, Mr Trump announced a $110bn (£77bn) arms deal with the country expected to be worth a total of $350 billion (£269bn) over 10 years.
Despite being critical of the Gulf nation in his presidential campaign, the 71-year-old broke with the presidential tradition of visiting Canada or Mexico first and was accused of using the visit to Saudi to shift focus away from domestic uproar over his firing of FBI director James Comey.
The President fired Mr Comey at the start of May, claiming he was "not able to effectively lead the bureau". Critics claimed the dismissal was linked to Mr Comey’s role in investigating Mr Trump’s allies over alleged dealings with Russia during the 2016 election.
News of the Saudi gifts comes as the President turns his focus to North Korea, as international condemnation of their nuclear weapons testing escalates.
The US President and South Korean president, Moon Jae-in, have agreed to "maximise pressure" on North Korea, with Mr Trump approving a weapons deal with Seoul worth billions of dollars.
North Korea has threatened to send "more gift packages" if the US continues to put pressure on the regime.
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments