Saudi Gazette report UNITED STATES Defense Secretary Jim Mattis is applauding Saudi Arabia for its humanitarian aid to war-torn Yemen, while stating there was an urgent need to find a political solution to Yemen's war, as he voiced hope for a UN special envoy's peace efforts. Mattis had earlier welcomed Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman, deputy premier and minister of defense, during an enhanced honor cordon at the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, on Thursday. Crown Prince Muhammad is on a visit in Washington. Speaking at the start of a Pentagon meeting with Crown Prince Muhammad, Mattis said the US is committed to working with Saudis and the United Nations to accelerate a political solution to the civil war. Mattis said the appointment last month of a new UN envoy to Yemen is an opportunity to speed up the push for a political resolution to the conflict. He called the Saudis part of the solution, adding that we are going to end this war on terms that are positive for the people of Yemen and their neighbors on the Arabian Peninsula. Saudi Arabia and America must pursue urgent efforts to bring a peaceful end to Yemen's war, Mattis told Prince Muhammad. As you discussed with President (Donald) Trump on Tuesday, we must also reinvigorate urgent efforts to seek a peaceful resolution to the civil war in Yemen and we support you in this regard, Mattis told Prince Muhammad at the Pentagon. Crown Prince Muhammad, earlier, met with some members of the US House of Representatives belonging to the Republican and Democratic parties, in Washington on Thursday. The Crown Prince held extensive talks with Republican members Will Herd, George Holland and Mike Gallagher, and Democratic member Brendan Boyle. Their talks, on the third day of the high profile visit of the Crown Prince to US, figured on further boosting Saudi-US bilateral relations and opportunities for development within the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 plan. They also reviewed the latest developments in the Middle East and Gulf regions and the ways to combat terrorism and extremism in a way strengthening security and stability of the region. Prince Khalid Bin Salman, Saudi Arabia’s ambassador to the US, also attended the meeting. On Wednesday, the Crown Prince met with top executives of a number of giant US companies such as Boeing, Raytheon, Lockheed Martin, and General Dynamics. The meeting focused on enhancing bilateral cooperation in all fields, including means of developing trade cooperation and technology development between the Kingdom and US, as well as reviewing a number of initiatives in diverse fields. Meanwhile, Salman Al-Ansari, president of the Saudi American Public Relation Affairs Committee (SAPRAC), said that the visit of the Crown Prince to US has enhanced the level of understanding between the two friendly countries, especially after the strengthening of the Saudi-US strategic partnership through the three summits held in Riyadh in May 2017, and signing of the Declaration of the US–Saudi Joint Strategic Vision. Speaking to the Saudi Press Agency, he said that the intensity of relations between the two countries has been instrumental in further strengthening mutual understanding towards several regional and international issues, including fighting extremism, addressing Iranian terrorism in the Middle East, and the necessity of confronting and stopping Iranian recklessness at the expense of the region’s security and stability. “As far as economic cooperation between the Kingdom and America is concerned, the volume of investments between the two countries was supposed to be around $200 billion in accordance with the agreements signed but it jumped over a year to $400 billion, which reflects in one way or the other the extent of mutual trust between Riyadh and Washington, and that would have a positive impact on the peoples of both countries,” he said while emphasizing that the Kingdom and US are dealing with the international issues on the basis of this partnership and not on the basis of defending one party on another.