President Joe Biden is looking to score a much-needed victory on his visit to the Middle East this week as his presidency has crumbled at home with recent Supreme Court losses, inflation, recession fears and a low approval rating. Globally, the president is dealing with an energy crisis and the Russia-Ukraine war. He May Have a Golden Opportunity: The Iran Nuclear Deal. Biden has a chance to revive the deal, but first he must convince worried Israeli and Saudi officials that it will be effective in preventing Iran from becoming a nuclear power. President Joe Biden speaks at the Congressional Picnic on the South Lawn of the White House, Tuesday, July 12, 2022, in Washington. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky) Biden will begin his trip on Wednesday when he lands in Israel, beginning a three-day visit to the country. Discussions of the Iran nuclear deal are expected to be at the center of his meetings with Israeli officials. TOP FORMER ISRAELI OFFICIAL: REVITALIZING IRAN NUCLEAR DEAL WILL HAVE ‘EXISTENTLY DISASTROUS CONSEQUENCES’ During his stay in Israel, Biden is expected to learn more about the country’s new “Iron Beam” missile defense system. He will also visit the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial and receive Israel’s Presidential Medal of Honor. The president is also expected to join Israeli leaders in issuing a “Jerusalem Declaration” condemning Iran’s nuclear program and its ambitions to develop nuclear energy. The statement will say the US and Israel will use “all elements of their national power against the Iranian nuclear threat,” according to an Israeli official. President Joe Biden boards Air Force One for a trip to Israel and Saudi Arabia, Tuesday, July 12, 2022, at Andrews Air Force Base, Md. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci) The trip comes after Biden administration negotiators failed to secure concessions from Iran during a meeting in Qatar last month. FRENCH FOREIGN MINISTER SAYS ‘WINDOW IS CLOSING’ ON IRAN NUCLEAR DEAL On Friday, Biden will travel to Saudi Arabia and first disembark at the port of Jeddah to meet with King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Saudi Arabia remains frustrated that Biden is clinging to the hope of a revived Iran deal, and US-Saudi relations have been strained since Biden said he would make the country a “pariah” because of its human rights abuses. Biden’s relationship with Mohammed bin Salman has been particularly strained since the president blamed him for the 2018 killing of US-based journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, second left, speaks during a meeting on Sunday, June 30, 2019. (Kim Kyung-Hoon/Pool via Bloomberg) While in Jeddah, Biden is expected to announce his administration’s vision for the Middle East, the White House said. UN: Iran REMOVES 27 SURVEILLANCE CAMERAS AT NUCLEAR SITES In 2015, when Biden was vice president of the United States, he oversaw the passage of the Iran nuclear deal brokered by President Barack Obama. At the time, Middle Eastern countries put aside differences to reach what many experts called a historic deal. But just three years later, then-President Donald Trump canceled the deal, which he and critics said did not go far enough to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons. The nuclear deal included Britain, France, Germany, Russia, China and the European Union. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Biden will be the first US president to travel directly from Israel to Saudi Arabia, as the two traditionally hostile countries have found common ground in their hostility to Iran. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
