The White House confirmed Tuesday afternoon that US President Donald Trump will visit Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar, his first trip to the Middle East since taking office this year.

White House spokeswoman Caroline Leavitt said the visit will take place from May 13 to 16. Trump will travel to Rome next Friday (April 25) to attend the funeral of Pope Francis, who passed away Monday morning.

"The president looks forward to strengthening ties between the United States and these countries he will visit," Levitt added. "He will hold numerous bilateral meetings and conversations." Late last month, Trump stated that he was likely to visit the Middle East in the coming months. Tuesday's confirmation comes after the United States announced, and then temporarily suspended, a series of tariffs on all its trading partners, including Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar. Trump stated that these tariffs were intended to level the playing field in global trade and encourage investment in the United States.

It's worth noting that when Trump first raised the possibility of a regional trip, he noted that he visited Saudi Arabia during his first term in the White House after Riyadh had invested $450 billion in American companies. He said that this time, Saudi Arabia had promised to more than double that amount, with a pledge reaching nearly $1 trillion.

"I think of it as creating more jobs than anything else, and now we're close to a trillion dollars...so that's more than double what we did when I first took office," Trump said.

The trip is expected to include discussions on tariffs, among other economic issues, and may also touch on Israel's war on Gaza. Trump has pledged to bring peace to the Middle East, and his regional envoy, Steve Witkoff, actively participated in ceasefire talks last January.

Earlier on Tuesday, Trump said he spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about several issues, including trade and Iran, and that the two leaders shared similar views.

Trump wrote in a post on TruthSocial: "The call went well - we are on the same page on all issues."