Political | Process

Mr. Biden, speaking to reporters in Rehoboth Beach, Del., said he has “been engaged in trying to bring more stability to the Middle East” and that a trip to the region is a possibility.

“I expect Saudi Arabia would be included if I did go, but I have no direct plans at the moment,” he said

Mr. Biden is expected to travel to Europe at the end of June to attend meetings of North Atlantic Treaty Organization and the G-7 group of largest advanced economies.

The White House has been weighing stops in Saudi Arabia and Israel as part of the itinerary.

Mr. Biden’s potential trip to the Middle East comes as Saudi-led OPEC and its allies agreed this week to a larger-than-expected oil-production increase, allowing Riyadh to potentially pump more crude.

Saudi Arabia has also agreed to extend a two-month-old cease-fire with Iran-backed Houthi fighters in Yemen, where the kingdom has been entangled in a costly and unpopular seven-year-old war.

Both moves have been sought by U.S. officials amid high oil and gasoline prices that have driven inflation and hurt Mr. Biden’s political standing in a crucial midterm election year.

Any engagement by Mr. Biden with Saudi Arabia could include a meeting with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, which would serve as a reversal for the U.S. president who has repeatedly criticized Saudi Arabia for its human-rights record and for the 2018 killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

As a candidate in 2020, Mr. Biden said he would “make them pay the price and make them, in fact, the pariah that they are. There’s very little social redeeming value in the present government in Saudi Arabia.”