WASHINGTON — A month ago, Jared Kushner — President Trump’s son-in-law and senior adviser — made a surprise trip to Riyadh to meet with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the fellow son of a world leader who is making waves with crackdowns and modernization efforts.

Despite Kushner’s two days of meetings with the prince, the journey left the impression that he is both near the center of power and increasingly marginalized at the same time.

His once sprawling White House portfolio, which included walk-in privileges to the Oval Office, has been diminished to its original scope under Chief of Staff John Kelly, and he has notably receded from public view.

Kushner, 36, flew a commercial plane to Saudi Arabia and the White House announced the visit only after he was already on the ground.

There were no news releases touting the specifics of his meetings. White House officials said only that the trip was part of Kushner’s effort to build regional support for peace between Israelis and Palestinians.

Just days after Kushner landed back in Washington, Salman launched a purge of allegedly corrupt Saudi officials also seen as rivals to the prince and his father, King Salman. Kushner had no knowledge or advance warning of the move.

The topic was not natural for the two to discuss, a White House official close to Kushner said. ‘‘Jared’s portfolio is Israeli-Palestinian peace, and he respects what his lane is,’’ the official said.

Kushner’s still-evolving role in the investigations of Russian election interference and possible obstruction of justice also make him a potential risk to Trump, even as he enjoys the special status of being married to the boss’s daughter Ivanka, and serving as one of the president’s senior confidants.

His family faces additional pressures over a troubled New York City skyscraper at 666 Fifth Ave., which he purchased in his role as head of his family’s real estate business but which he has divested from since entering the administration.

In a rare interview in his West Wing office earlier this month, Kushner offered his own version of the fable of the fox, who knows many things, and the hedgehog, who knows one important thing.

‘‘During the campaign, I was more like a fox than a hedgehog. I was more of a generalist having to learn about and master a lot of skills quickly,’’ he said.

‘‘When I got to D.C., I came with an understanding that the problems here are so complex — and if they were easy problems, they would have been fixed before — and so I became more like the hedgehog, where it was more taking issues you care deeply about, going deep and devoting the time, energy, and resources to trying to drive change,’’ he said.

This portrait of Kushner comes from interviews with Kushner himself, as well as 12 senior administration officials, aides, outside advisers, and confidants.

Allies say Kushner’s subtle shift into the background of the West Wing reflects his natural inclination to work hard and eschew the limelight, while his enemies gloat that it stems from a series of avoidable missteps that are the result of his political naivete.

After recent reports, which the White House denied, that the president privately blames Kushner for Robert Mueller’s widening inquiry, Breitbart, the conservative website, snarkily dubbed him ‘‘Mr. Perfect.’’

Some aides scoff at the notion that Kushner isn’t still whispering to the president about official business. But one of Kelly’s conditions for taking the job was that everyone, including Kushner and his wife, had to go through him to reach the president, and Kelly has made clear that Kushner reports to him, aides said.

The new hierarchy is part of Kelly’s effort to sideline Kushner, said one Republican in frequent contact with the White House, though others say the order Kelly has imposed has simply liberated Kushner to focus on his own portfolio — and eased some of the animosity his colleagues felt toward him.

Kushner said he welcomes the change.

‘‘The order allows this place to function,’’ he said. ‘‘My number one priority is a high functioning White House, because I believe in the president’s agenda, and I think it should get executed.’’