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US Vice President Joe Biden said on Friday that he told Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman that he held him accountable for the murder of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi, shortly after exchanging a handshake with the kingdom’s de facto ruler.
On a visit to a country he had labeled a pariah after Khashoggi’s murder in 2018, Biden said the heir to the throne, known as MbS, denied involvement in the murder and said he had held some these responsible accountable.
“With regard to the murder of Jamal Khashoggi, I raised it at the beginning of the meeting, making it very clear what I thought at the time and what I think now,” Biden told reporters.
“In discussing it, I was straightforward and direct. I made my point very clear. I stated unequivocally that an American president remaining silent on a human rights issue is inconstant with who we are and who I am.”
According to US intelligence, the crown prince authorised an operation to apprehend or kill Khashoggi, a Saudi insider turned critic who was murdered and dismembered by Saudi agents within the kingdom’s consulate in Istanbul. What happened to Khashoggi, according to Biden, was “outrageous.”
Biden described the crown prince’s reaction during their meeting as “basically saying that he was not solely accountable for it.” “I indicated that I believed he was.”
“In discussing it, I was straightforward and direct. I made my point very clear. I stated unequivocally that an American president remaining silent on a human rights issue is inconstant with who we are and who I am.”
According to US intelligence, the crown prince authorised an operation to apprehend or kill Khashoggi, a Saudi insider turned critic who was murdered and disembowelled by Saudi agents within the kingdom’s consulate in Istanbul. What happened to Khashoggi, according to Biden, was “outrageous.”
Biden described the crown prince’s reaction during their meeting as “basically saying that he was not solely accountable for it.” “I indicated that I believed he was.”
The president stated that they also debated energy and that he expected Saudi Arabia, a major oil producer, to take action on energy in the coming weeks.
As a presidential candidate, Biden stated that the kingdom should be designated as a “pariah” on the international stage as a result of Khashoggi’s murder. On Friday, he stated that he did not regret making that remark.
With body language being scrutinised, officials said at the start of Biden’s Middle East trip that he would avoid direct contact, such as shaking hands, as a precaution against COVID-19. However, the president ended up shaking hands during in the Israel leg of the tour as well.
Biden’s interplay with the crown prince drew instantaneous criticism in the United States, including from The Washington Post and The New York Times.
