DHAKA: US president Barack Obama landed in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday to shore up ties with new King Salman and offer condolences after the death of his predecessor and half-brother, King Abdullah.

Air Force One touched down at King Khalid International Airport in the capital Riyadh, arriving from India where Obama cut short a state visit to travel to the ultra-conservative Muslim kingdom, a key US ally.

Saudi television showed King Salman welcoming Obama and his wife Michelle at the bottom of a red-carpeted ramp before a military band played the US and Saudi national anthems.

A row of stars and stripes flags flew beside Saudi Arabia’s green standards.

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Nayef, the kingdom’s powerful former interior minister, and Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi were among the officials welcoming the US leader, television showed, reports The Straits Times.

BDST: 1944 HRS, JAN 27, 2015