Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman appears to be cultivating a strong relationship with US President Donald Trump, exchanging praises and laughter with him in the Oval Office. But he grew noticeably uncomfortable when journalists brought up Jamal Khashoggi. The Crown Prince began fidgeting with his fingers and looking down at his hands as soon as the name of the Saudi-American journalist, who was brutally killed at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul in 2018, was mentioned. According to US intelligence, Jamal Khashoggi was killed on the orders of the Crown Prince himself.
The Crown Prince said that the murder of Khashoggi was a mistake and that Saudi Arabia had placed measures to prevent such an act from happening ever again, but not before President Trump chipped in. President Trump reacted with anger at the question and insulted Khashoggi’s memory in order to dismiss the question. President Trump said that: “You’re mentioning someone that was extremely controversial. A lot of people didn’t like that gentleman. Whether you like him or don’t, things happen. But he [MBS] knew nothing about it. You don’t have to embarrass our guest.”
President Trump also confirmed once again that the US will be selling F-35s to Saudi Arabia. The Saudi Crown Prince said that Saudi Arabia will be investing up to $600 million into the US with the possibility of increasing this investment to €1 trillion. Answering a question on the Abraham Accords, he also reiterated that Saudi Arabia is looking forward to see both Israelis and Palestinians living in peace and confirmed his willing to sign them.
President Trump praised his good relationship with the Crown Prince and also said that Saudi Arabia and Turkey lobbied him to remove sanctions from Syria.
You can view the press conference in full here.
Newsroom
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