President Trump hosts crown prince of Bahrain at the White House

WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) – President Donald Trump and the crown prince of Bahrain met at the White House on Wednesday.

The two countries have signed an agreement to enter into a civilian nuclear deal.

The deal will open up negotiations on what is known as a “123 agreement.” It will allow U.S. and American companies to invest in and construct nuclear energy projects in Bahrain, an island nation off the coast of Saudi Arabia with a population of around 1.5 million people.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Bahraini Foreign Minister Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani signed the memorandum of understanding on Wednesday, after Rubio signed a similar agreement with Malaysia last week.

“The United States is prepared to be partner with any nation on Earth that wants to pursue a civil nuclear program that clearly is not geared towards weapons and or threatening the security of their neighbors,” Rubio said.

Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa also announced a plan to invest $17 billion in the United States which “builds upon a legacy that we’re very proud of.”

During a wide-ranging question and answer session the president defended Attorney General Pam Bondi over her handling of the Jeffrey Epstein case and said that he thinks “she’s doing a great job.”

President Trump also said he has no plans to fire Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell although he criticized him in recent weeks since the Fed has not cut rates.

Wednesday night the president will host the prime minister of Qatar for dinner.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.