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Saudi Arabia's King Salman has backed U.S. President Donald Trump's request to have safe zones in war-torn Syria and Yemen as the two leaders agreed to strengthen bilateral economic and energy cooperation, the White House has said.

"The President requested and the King agreed to support safe zones in Syria and Yemen, as well as supporting other ideas to help the many refugees who are displaced by the ongoing conflicts," the White House said after Trump and the Saudi King had their first telephonic conversation on January 29.

"They agreed on the importance of strengthening joint efforts to fight the spread of radical Islamic terrorism and also on the importance of working jointly to address challenges to regional peace and security, including the conflicts in Syria and Yemen," the White House said.

Trump earlier said he "will absolutely do safe zones in Syria" for refugees fleeing violence in the war-torn country.

Saying Europe had made a tremendous mistake by admitting millions of refugees from Syria and other Middle Eastern trouble spots, Trump told ABC News in an interview: "I don't want that to happen here."

According to a document seen by Reuters on Wednesday, Trump is expected to order the Pentagon and the State Department in coming days to craft a plan for setting up the "safe zones," a move that could risk escalation of U.S. military involvement in Syria's civil war.

The White House further added that Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Muhammad bin Zayid Al Nuhayyan in another telephone call also supported the idea of safe zones in Syria and Yemen.

"The two leaders reaffirmed the strong partnership between both countries and committed to further strengthen cooperation on fighting radical Islamic terrorism. They discussed recent developments in the Middle East, including the fight against ISIS and joint efforts to address the conflict in Yemen and elsewhere in the region," the White House said.

The Trump administration’s idea of setting up safe zones for civilians in Syria was greeted with caution by Russia and Turkey, which have taken the lead in the latest peace efforts to end the six-year war in Syria.

Ankara said it had always supported the idea, but both Ankara and Moscow warned such plans would require careful consideration.

The idea of safe zones was earlier excluded by the Obama administration for fear it would bring the United States into direct conflict with Syrian President Bashar Assad and Russia.

Armed conflict continues in Syria since March 2011. Government troops are confronted by militants of different armed groups. Russia has begun airstrikes on terrorist facilities in Syria since 30 September 2015. The Russian military involvement follows an official request from President Bashar Assad to President Vladimir Putin.

A nationwide ceasefire began in Syria on December 30, 2016, to pave the way for new peace talks on Syria. Russia and Turkey serve as guarantors of the ceasefire deal, paving the way for negotiations between the Syrian regime and rebels.

Following the Astana talks, Russia, Iran and agreed to create a trilateral group on monitoring the Syrian ceasefire.

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