Trump’s Middle East trip will take him to 3 countries with Trump-branded projects

During President Donald Trump’s trip to the Middle East next week he will visit three countries—all of which have Trump-branded properties or ongoing developments. The United Arab Emirates has one existing Trump-branded golf course, with three more golf courses and three residential and hotel projects in development in UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar. This trip, where Trump will meet with foreign officials who have the ability to make decisions affecting his company and business partners, poses enormous conflicts of interest for Trump, whose company is engaged in significantly more foreign business than during his first term.
The Trump International Golf Club, Dubai, which opened during Trump’s first term, is the only currently open project in the three countries. An additional golf course in Dubai, with the same partner, DAMAC Properties, is under development.
In Saudi Arabia, three projects are under development with development company Dar Global—two residential projects and a golf course, with one of the residential properties expected to open in 2029. An additional Dar Global hotel and residential project in Dubai just began selling apartments recently, for up to $20 million each, following a party held in honor of Eric Trump and the new project. Dar Global is the international subsidiary of a Saudi company with close links to the government of Saudi Arabia.
The Trump Organization’s golf resort in Qatar was announced a mere two weeks ago, bringing the number of Trump-branded projects open or in development around the globe to an even 20. The Qatar project will be built in partnership with Dar Global and, reportedly, a Qatari company owned by the country’s government, which poses potentially even more serious conflicts of interest risks, as it would mean the president’s namesake company is directly in business with a foreign government.
In these three countries—as well as the numerous others where Trump has properties or projects—Trump knows that the decisions he makes as president could affect his bottom line, and foreign officials in those countries could provide special treatment for the president of the United States—or exact punishment for decisions they don’t like. Just a few months into Trump’s second term, at least one foreign official has already come to the aid of a Trump Organization project: in Vietnam in March, the prime minister expressed support for expediting the development of a Trump Organization project during a meeting with the head of a firm that represents the Trump Organization in the country. While the Trump Organization moves full steam ahead on foreign developments, Donald Trump’s visit to the Middle East highlights just how risky it is to have a president potentially mixing foreign policy and personal profit.