WASHINGTON – Saudi Arabia’s young crown prince heads to the WhiteHouse Tuesday, looking to underscore his grip on power and ensure thatseveral emerging points of friction don’t threaten a burgeoning alliancewith Donald Trump.

In front of the cameras, it will be all back-slapping, handshakes, smilesand warm words.

This is Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s first visit to the Oval Officesince the 32-year-old cemented his role as the kingdom’s de facto politicalleader and embarked on economic and social reforms long sought by the west.

His reformist message and the promise of Saudi investment in the UnitedStates has endeared him to the neophyte US president — 39 years his elder– and America’s own political princeling Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law.

Trump and MBS — as he is known in Washington’s corridors of power — haveseen eye-to-eye on concerns about Iran’s military activism, Middle Eastpeace, relaxing Saudi Arabia’s deeply conservative laws and over their lovefor big ticket mega-investments.

‘While the crown prince is in Washington, we’ll be advocating for $35billion in commercial deals for US companies that would support 120,000American jobs and advance Saudi Arabia’s economic reform agenda,’ a seniorUS administration official said.

*Ripples in the pond*

But an all-out PR campaign designed to burnish the crown prince’s image,and declarations that ‘relations have never been better,’ mask severalproblems that could spoil the honeymoon.

As Prince Mohammed arrived in Washington, word trickled out that SaudiAramco — the kingdom’s energy behemoth — was cooling on the idea of astock listing in New York, something Trump has publicly lobbied for.

The news was accompanied by expressions of concern about a US law thatexposes Saudi Arabia to legal action over the 9/11 attacks, which Riyadhwould dearly like to see removed.

‘The Trump administration will not be able to offer the necessaryguarantees on any changes to US law that would reassure Saudi Arabia andthe IPO is simply too important to place in jeopardy,’ said Ayham Kamel ofthe Eurasia Group, a consultancy.

Another point of friction is the war in Yemen, where Saudi Arabia leads acoalition fighting the Huthi rebels, who are allegedly backed by Iran.

That devastating two-year-old conflict was an early proving ground for theprince, then the minister of defense, but it has been beset by atrocitiesagainst civilians and strategic drift.

Just hours after the prince leaves theWhite Houselink> , Congress will vote on rulesdesigned to withdraw US intelligence and reconnaissance support for the war.

The measures may not pass, but are designed as a clear warning to theWhiteHouse link> against signing a blankcheck.

Trump is also expected to press his guest to end a standoff with Qatar,which has wrecked Gulf Cooperation Council unity and put the US president’splans for a US-Gulf summit at Camp David in doubt.

But the most delicate discussions could be about Saudi Arabia’s nuclearprogram, which is mooted as civilian-focused but could quickly become aplatform for building a weapon.

‘Saudi Arabia does not want to acquire any nuclear bomb, but without adoubt, if Iran developed a nuclear bomb, we will follow suit as soon aspossible,’ he told CBS television in a recent interview.

Saudi Arabia’s nuclear program is ‘a massive contract that also has massivegeopolitical implications,’ according to the Soufan Group, anotherpolitical consultancy.

‘Letting the deal go through without the prohibitions (on nuclear weapons)would be potentially disastrous,’ the group said.

But if these niggles turn into full disputes, it is likely to be onlybehind closed doors.

In advance of the trip, officials announced a monthly American, Saudi, andEmirati forum to discuss issues of strategic importance and hailed thestrength of the relationship.

‘The president’s meeting with the crown prince’ one US official said, ‘is atremendous opportunity to make progress on a range of issues and strengthenthese bilateral relations.’

After his visit to Washington, Prince Mohammed will embark on a nationwidetour, visiting New York, Boston, oil hub Houston, Los Angeles and SiliconValley. He is expected to remain in the United States through the firstweek of April. -APP/AFP