Trump Nominates Wesley Hunt as US Ambassador to Saudi Arabia
US President Donald Trump has nominated Republican Texas Representative Wesley Hunt for the post of US ambassador to Saudi Arabia, a position that had been vacant since January 2025.
According to the Mehr news agency, citing Arabic 21, Hunt must win confirmation from the US Senate before beginning his mission in Riyadh. After the nomination was announced, he said he understood the strategic importance of ties between Washington and Riyadh and the responsibilities of the post.
Before entering Congress in 2022, Hunt served twice as a diplomatic liaison officer in Saudi Arabia. He is also a former US Army officer and Apache helicopter pilot.
However, his nomination comes after Hunt used his experience in Saudi Arabia during his election campaign to criticise Saudi rule, a move that sparked political controversy within the Republican Party in Texas.
In January last year, he wrote on social media that he had seen repression in Saudi Arabia up close. Hunt also referred to public executions and the ban on women driving during his time in the country.
Despite this background, Hunt said after being nominated by Trump that if confirmed by the Senate, he would work to strengthen ties between the two countries and advance the policy of “peace through strength.” The nomination comes amid rising regional tensions and attacks by Yemen’s Ansarullah on Saudi Arabia and its oil facilities.
Riyadh, the Saudi capital, is considered one of the most important US diplomatic hubs in the Middle East, and Washington and Riyadh’s relations are of broad importance in security, energy and regional developments.
