On November 21, 2018, President Donald Trump said the United States would stay aligned with Saudi Arabia even as questions deepened over whether Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman knew about the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
Trump said in a White House statement that the crown prince “may have been behind” the murder, but added that Washington’s ties with Riyadh would continue. “We may never know all of the facts surrounding the murder of Mr Jamal Khashoggi. In any case, our relationship is with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia,” he said. “The United States intends to remain a steadfast partner.”
Khashoggi disappeared after being lured into the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on October 2. His death badly damaged Saudi Arabia’s image and undercut the crown prince’s effort to present the kingdom as a reforming state. It also put pressure on the White House, which had treated MBS as a central partner in the region.
The statement came after The New York Times reported that the CIA had concluded with high confidence that Prince Mohammed was involved in the killing. Trump, however, said the agency had found “nothing definitive,” while other US media reports said the intelligence assessment pointed to the crown prince as the person who ordered the murder.
Saudi King Salman and the crown prince “vigorously deny any knowledge of the planning or execution of the murder of Mr Khashoggi,” Trump said. He also argued that Saudi Arabia remained important to US interests because of its role in countering Iran, its commitment to $450 billion in US weapons contracts and other investments, and its help in keeping oil prices low.
Trump acknowledged that Congress was pushing for sanctions against MBS and other action against the Saudi leadership. “I will consider whatever ideas are presented to me, but only if they are consistent with the absolute security and safety of America,” he said.
The Washington Post, where Khashoggi had written and which he sometimes criticized the crown prince, condemned Trump’s position. Publisher and CEO Fred Ryan said the president had placed “personal relationships and commercial interests above American interests in his desire to continue to do business as usual.” Ryan added: “Trump is correct in saying the world is a very dangerous place. His surrender to this state-ordered murder will only make it more so.”
The White House had spent weeks avoiding a firm conclusion on Saudi involvement, even after Turkish sources and others said Khashoggi was killed inside the Istanbul consulate. Saudi Arabia later accepted responsibility and said 21 people were in custody, with death penalties sought against five men.
Criticism of Trump’s stance came quickly. Former CIA director John Brennan tweeted: “Since Mr Trump excels in dishonesty, it is now up to members of Congress to obtain & declassify the CIA findings on Jamal Khashoggi's death,” adding: “No one in Saudi Arabia-most especially the Crown Prince-should escape accountability for such a heinous act.”
Democratic Senator Jeanne Shaheen called the White House approach “a stain on our democracy,” accusing Trump of siding with “murderous foreign dictators over American intelligence professionals.” Senator Bob Corker, who chaired the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said the administration was acting “as a public relations firm” for the crown prince.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo backed the president’s line, saying the US relationship with Saudi Arabia had to be viewed through the lens of national security. “It's a mean, nasty world out there, the Middle East in particular,” he told reporters. “It is the president's obligation, indeed the state department's duty as well, to ensure that we adopt policies that further America's national security. So as the president said today, the United States will continue to have a relationship with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. They're an important partner of ours.”
Turkey, meanwhile, kept pressing for accountability. Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said after meeting Pompeo that Ankara wanted “whoever gave the instruction” for Khashoggi’s murder to face justice. “We don't see this issue as a bilateral issue -- it is a criminal and judicial case and it has to be dealt like that,” he said. “There are still questions that are unanswered and we're trying to find the answers.”
