Home
Politics
"Both leaders reaffirmed the importance of the US-Saudi bilateral relationship," the statement read.
A spokesman for the Saudi Health Minister said the king was suffering from a "lumbar spine disc prolapse complicated with a haematoma pressing on lower nerve roots causing pain" -- a painful but treatable ailment.
Before traveling to the United States, Abdullah, 86, tasked his half-brother Crown Prince Sultan bin Abdul Aziz -- officially 79 but believed to be aged closer to 85 -- with running the country in his absence.
A close US ally, Saudi Arabia is the richest and one of the most influential countries in the Middle East, holding some 20 percent of the world's proven oil reserves.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A spokesman for the Saudi Health Minister said the king was suffering from a "lumbar spine disc prolapse complicated with a haematoma pressing on lower nerve roots causing pain" -- a painful but treatable ailment.
Before traveling to the United States, Abdullah, 86, tasked his half-brother Crown Prince Sultan bin Abdul Aziz -- officially 79 but believed to be aged closer to 85 -- with running the country in his absence.
A close US ally, Saudi Arabia is the richest and one of the most influential countries in the Middle East, holding some 20 percent of the world's proven oil reserves.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
