Onlykashmir.in News Desk
US President Donald Trump welcomed Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to the White House and said that the crown prince had no knowledge of the 2018 killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. His statement contradicted a 2021 US intelligence report that said the killing was carried out with the crown prince’s approval.
Speaking to reporters at the White House, Mohammed bin Salman said that Saudi Arabia had taken all appropriate steps to investigate Khashoggi’s death. He described the killing as “painful and sad.”
It was his first visit to the US since Khashoggi’s killing, which has severely damaged relations between the two countries. When asked by a reporter in the Oval Office, Trump said that you are referring to a person who was very controversial and many people did not like him. He added that things happen, but the crown prince did not know about it and the guests should not be embarrassed.
The crown prince also said that Saudi Arabia had taken all necessary steps to investigate the incident. While a 2021 report issued under President Joe Biden concluded that the crown prince had approved the capture or killing of Khashoggi in Istanbul. Although dozens of Saudi officials were sanctioned, the crown prince was not included.
On Tuesday night, President Donald Trump hosted Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman at a lavish black-tie dinner at the White House in Washington. The event marked a new era in US-Saudi relations. Elon Musk, Cristiano Ronaldo, FIFA President Gianni Infantino and many prominent figures in the financial and energy sectors attended.
The event discussed major investment projects and Trump announced in his speech that Saudi Arabia was a “major non-NATO ally.”
Earlier in the Oval Office, Trump and MBS discussed one-state and two-state solutions to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. According to Trump, the meeting was very productive.
The event further cemented MBS’s global image, especially at a time when Saudi Arabia is investing in major infrastructure and artificial intelligence projects in the United States. There was talk throughout the evening of potential multi-billion dollar deals and hints of more high-level meetings to come.
