Trump says no new punishment against Saudi Arabia for journalist murder

World Today

US Missing WriterIn this Feb. 1, 2015, file photo, Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi speaks during a press conference in Manama, Bahrain. Turkish claims that Khashoggi, who wrote for The Washington Post, was slain inside a Saudi diplomatic mission in Turkey, has put the Trump administration in a delicate spot with one of its closest Mid-east allies. (AP Photo/Hasan Jamali, File)

President Donald Trump says the U.S. will not levy additional punitive measures at this time against Saudi Arabia over the killing of Jamal Khashoggi.

Trump said in a statement Tuesday that the U.S. does not condone the killing of the U.S-based Saudi columnist, but that “foolishly” canceling $110 billion in arms sales — as some in Congress have suggested — would only mean that Saudi Arabia would go to other countries to acquire them.

Trump was questioned at the White House about his decision and said the CIA never made a determination about who killed Saudi writer and critic Jamal Khashoggi. He says intelligence officials never had anything “definitive.”

He also said said oil prices would “skyrocket” if the U.S. made a “terrible mistake” to break with Saudi Arabia. Trump said he was not going to “destroy” the world’s economy by being “foolish with Saudi Arabia,” adding that the United States needs Riyadh as a counterbalance to Iran.

He says he’s focused on “putting America first.”

Trump says the king and crown prince of Saudi Arabia “vigorously deny” any knowledge of the planning and execution of the Oct. 2 murder of The Washington Post columnist at the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul.

In the statement, Trump stated “it could well be that the crown prince had knowledge.” He continued, “maybe he did and maybe he didn’t.”

The president has resisted calls so far for a stronger response to the Oct. 2 killing of the U.S.-based writer by agents of the Saudi government inside their consulate in Istanbul.

The administration has imposed sanctions on 17 Saudis accused of participating in the killing. But lawmakers in Congress want tougher measures. European allies are stepping up their punitive measures against the kingdom, too.

Story by the Associated Press.


Joel Rubin on US-Saudi Arabia relations

President Donald Trump claimed breaking with Riyadh would be a ‘terrible mistake’ – as he reaffirmed his administration’s support for Saudi Arabia. Now Trump is facing backlash from U.S. lawmakers critical of President Trump’s decision to continue supporting arms sales to Riyadh after the death of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Joel Rubin is Executive Director of the Washington Center for Middle East Strategy. And a former Deputy Assistant Secretary of State. He spoke with CGTN’s Mike Walter about the implications of the White House and the message it sends to the rest of the world.

Full statement from the White House

Office of the Press Secretary

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 20, 2018

Statement from President Donald J. Trump on Standing with Saudi Arabia 

America First! 

The world is a very dangerous place!

The country of Iran, as an example, is responsible for a bloody proxy war against Saudi Arabia in Yemen, trying to destabilize Iraq’s fragile attempt at democracy, supporting the terror group Hezbollah in Lebanon, propping up dictator Bashar Assad in Syria (who has killed millions of his own citizens), and much more. Likewise, the Iranians have killed many Americans and other innocent people throughout the Middle East. Iran states openly, and with great force, “Death to America!” and “Death to Israel!” Iran is considered “the world’s leading sponsor of terror.”

On the other hand, Saudi Arabia would gladly withdraw from Yemen if the Iranians would agree to leave. They would immediately provide desperately needed humanitarian assistance. Additionally, Saudi Arabia has agreed to spend billions of dollars in leading the fight against Radical Islamic Terrorism.

After my heavily negotiated trip to Saudi Arabia last year, the Kingdom agreed to spend and invest $450 billion in the United States. This is a record amount of money. It will create hundreds of thousands of jobs, tremendous economic development, and much additional wealth for the United States. Of the $450 billion, $110 billion will be spent on the purchase of military equipment from Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Raytheon and many other great U.S. defense contractors. If we foolishly cancel these contracts, Russia and China would be the enormous beneficiaries – and very happy to acquire all of this newfound business. It would be a wonderful gift to them directly from the United States!

The crime against Jamal Khashoggi was a terrible one, and one that our country does not condone. Indeed, we have taken strong action against those already known to have participated in the murder. After great independent research, we now know many details of this horrible crime. We have already sanctioned 17 Saudis known to have been involved in the murder of Mr. Khashoggi, and the disposal of his body.

Representatives of Saudi Arabia say that Jamal Khashoggi was an “enemy of the state” and a member of the Muslim Brotherhood, but my decision is in no way based on that – this is an unacceptable and horrible crime. King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman vigorously deny any knowledge of the planning or execution of the murder of Mr. Khashoggi. Our intelligence agencies continue to assess all information, but it could very well be that the Crown Prince had knowledge of this tragic event – maybe he did and maybe he didn’t!

That being said, 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. They have been a great ally in our very important fight against Iran. The United States intends to remain a steadfast partner of Saudi Arabia to ensure the interests of our country, Israel and all other partners in the region. It is our paramount goal to fully eliminate the threat of terrorism throughout the world!

I understand there are members of Congress who, for political or other reasons, would like to go in a different direction – and they are free to do so. I will consider whatever ideas are presented to me, but only if they are consistent with the absolute security and safety of America. After the United States, Saudi Arabia is the largest oil producing nation in the world. They have worked closely with us and have been very responsive to my requests to keeping oil prices at reasonable levels – so important for the world. As President of the United States I intend to ensure that, in a very dangerous world, America is pursuing its national interests and vigorously contesting countries that wish to do us harm. Very simply it is called America First!

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Statement from President Donald J. Trump on Standing with Saudi Arabia

Statement from President Donald J. Trump on Standing with Saudi Arabia