President Trump takes the hand of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia during a bilateral meeting in the Oval Office of the White House on Tuesday.
Win McNamee/Getty Images
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Win McNamee/Getty Images
In a recent Oval Office meeting, President Trump stood by Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman amid questions regarding the CIA’s assessment of the prince’s involvement in the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. “You’re mentioning somebody that was extremely controversial,” Trump remarked about Khashoggi, adding that “a lot of people didn’t like that gentleman that you’re talking about.”
The CIA had determined the crown prince sanctioned the 2018 mission that led to Khashoggi’s brutal death at the Saudi consulate in Turkey. Despite these findings, Prince Salman has consistently denied any foreknowledge of the event, describing it as “heinous” and “unjustifiable.”
During the meeting, Prince Salman stated that Saudi Arabia has “improved our system to be sure that nothing happened like that,” acknowledging the incident as a “huge mistake” and expressing determination to prevent a recurrence.
Trump also addressed potential conflicts of interest regarding his business connections with Saudi Arabia, asserting, “I have nothing to do” with his family’s business affairs. He emphasized his decision to leave his business success behind to focus on making the U.S. prosperous.
The discussions between Trump and Salman included a major agreement, promising significant Saudi investment in the U.S. in return for access to important military and technological resources for the Gulf nation.
