WASHINGTON

US President Donald Trump on Monday said he is considering approving the sale of F-35 fighter jets to Saudi Arabia, just hours before Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is set to visit the White House on Tuesday.

"I will say that we will be doing that. We’ll be selling F-35s," Trump told reporters when asked if he is planning to sell the advanced fighter jets to Saudi Arabia.

Trump said Friday that Riyadh has shown a strong interest in purchasing the advanced aircraft made by Lockheed Martin. "They wanna buy a lot of jets," he said. "They’ve asked me to look at it. They want to buy a lot of ‘35,’ but they want to buy actually more than that fighter jets."

His comments came as several US media outlets reported he is leaning toward supporting the sale.

Bloomberg, citing an administration official, said Trump and the crown prince are expected to reach an agreement enabling Saudi Arabia to purchase the F-35s during the visit, alongside other economic and defense arrangements, including a liquefied natural gas deal.