The de facto ruler of Saudi Arabia the crown prince Mohammed bin Salman countered Joe Biden after the US president confronted him about the 2018 assassination of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi during a meeting between the two leaders on Friday (15), according to a source familiar with the matter.
At the meeting, Bin Salman, also known as MBS, denied responsibility for Khashoggi’s murder at the kingdom’s consulate in Turkey. Biden would have indicated that he disagreed with the prince, based on intelligence assessments of the United States according to the source.
In response to Biden’s comment, the Saudi prince cited the sexual and physical abuse of prisoners at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq by the United States military and the May murder of Palestinian-American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh in the occupied West Bank as incidents that reflected poorly on the US, the source said.
Saudi Arabia’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Adel al-Jubeir echoed the sentiment in an interview with Wolf Blitzer of CNN shortly after the end of the meeting, in which Jubeir took part.
“We investigate, punish and make sure this doesn’t happen again,” Jubeir said when asked about Khashoggi’s murder. “This is what countries do. This is what the United States did when the mistake at Abu Ghraib was made.”
Abu Ghraib Prison was a US military detention center for captured Iraqis from the beginning of the US invasion of Iraq in 2003 until the prison’s closure in 2006.
In 2004, several images of the prison were leaked, showing abuses of Iraqi prisoners by the US military. Eleven American soldiers were convicted of crimes related to the scandal.
Renowned Al Jazeera journalist Abu Akleh was shot dead during an Israeli military attack on the occupied West Bank city of Jenin. Abu Akleh was a famous name in the Arab world, having spent decades reporting on the plight of Palestinians under Israeli occupation.
Images obtained by CNN – corroborated by testimony from eight eyewitnesses, an audio forensic analyst and an explosive weapons expert – suggested that Abu Akleh, who was wearing a helmet and blue protective vest with the inscription “Press” at the time of his murder, was killed. shot in a targeted attack by Israeli forces.
In the West Bank on Friday, Biden said the United States insisted on a “full and transparent investigation” into the journalist’s murder.
Biden called Abu Akleh’s death a “huge loss” alongside Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas in Bethlehem.
“I hope his legacy… inspires more young people to continue his work of telling the truth and telling stories that are often overlooked. The United States will continue to insist on a full and transparent account of his death and continue to defend media freedom around the world,” Biden said.
Palestinian officials and members of Abu Akleh’s family have criticized the US investigation and are urging the country to do more to hold Israel accountable for the murder.
Khashoggi was cited in meeting between Biden and Bin Salman
In a speech quickly organized after Biden’s bilateral talks with Bin Salman, the president said he cited Khashoggi’s assassination at the start of the meeting.
“Regarding the killing of Khashoggi, I spoke about it during the meeting, making it clear what I thought then and what I think now,” Biden told reporters. “I was direct and direct when discussing the matter. I made my vision very clear.”
But the human rights discussion appears to have been overshadowed by broader conversations about energy security, regional stability, trade and investment, according to several officials. Iran’s nuclear ambitions and the war in Yemen are also believed to have been key parts of the discussions.
“Those responsible[pelo assassinato de Khashoggi] were investigated and faced the law and are paying the price for their crime,” Jubeir told CNN . “The conversation moved forward in terms of the official discussion.”
Senior administration officials on Saturday defended Biden’s decision to meet face-to-face with MBS, despite strong backlash and criticism, saying it would have been a “setback if the president didn’t come to the region and if he wasn’t willing to cite security issues.” human rights with foreign leaders around the world.”
“It’s hard to say that values will be a fundamental part of your foreign policy and human rights issues that are significant to us as a nation, and certainly as an administration, and then not go abroad and not talk to leaders frankly about it.” said a senior government official.
Biden traveled to Jeddah in search of solutions to one of his main domestic political problems – skyrocketing gas prices – as diplomacy with Saudi Arabia in the Middle East was seen as one of the few routes he could take to lower prices are putting pressure on millions of Americans.
But White House officials say the president will not return to Washington on Saturday with explicit increases in oil production.
The expectation is that there will be increases in the coming months – made within the context of rising production levels in the OPEC+ cartel established at its August meeting.
Source: CNN Brasil
I’m James Harper, a highly experienced and accomplished news writer for World Stock Market. I have been writing in the Politics section of the website for over five years, providing readers with up-to-date and insightful information about current events in politics. My work is widely read and respected by many industry professionals as well as laymen.
