Trump backs Saudi regime, murder or no murder

This video from the USA says about itself:

Why Did CIA Turn Against Saudi Crown Prince MBS? It’s More than Khashoggi

20 November 2018

CIA officials are signaling Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman must be replaced. Is this all about the killing of Jamal Khashoggi? Professor Asad AbuKhalil says there are other political reasons.

However, Trump reacted …

This 20 November 2018 video from the USA says about itself:

While casting doubt over the CIA’s findings, US president Donald Trump has defended his country’s relationship with the kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Translated from Dutch NOS TV, 20 November 2018:

Trump keeps backing ‘great ally’ Saudi Arabia

President Trump does not intend to punish his “great ally” Saudi Arabia with economic sanctions following the murder of journalist Khashoggi at the Saudi consulate in Turkey.

The American president says in a statement, under the heading “The world is a very dangerous place!”, that he finds the murder terrible, but that it would be stupid to end the lucrative arms contracts and the “close ties” with the oil-rich country. That would really favour Russia and China, Trump thinks. “It would be a great gift for them, straight from the US!”

On a state visit in 2017, Trump sold billions of weapons to Saudi Arabia. He therefore does not feel inclined to respond to the call for sanctions because of “political or other reasons”. Moreover, Trump’s attitude towards Saudi Arabia is comparable to that of the European Union, where no arms embargo is taking off.

Murder assignment

Jamal Khashoggi was a fierce critic of the Saudi regime. He was murdered at the beginning of last month during a visit to the Saudi consulate in Istanbul. From leaked information from the CIA it would appear that the Saudi crown prince, who has a lot of power in Saudi Arabia, ordered the murder.

Trump says in his statement that crown prince Mohammed bin Salman is “perhaps and perhaps not” involved in the murder. Following the CIA information, Trump announced that he would present an “extended report” on the facts of the murder today, but he has only come up with this statement for the time being. In an interview with the American press he claimed that the CIA “has no conclusive” evidence that the crown prince is behind the murder.

Earlier, sanctions have been imposed [by the United States] against seventeen other Saudi officials.

The seventeen people scapegoated by the crown prince, to be beheaded, so they will not be able to implicate His Royal Highness Mohammed bin Salman in the murder plot in witness statements.

In the American Congress, Democratic and Republican politicians say they want to punish the crown prince, but Trump will prevent that with a veto, says correspondent Arjen van der Horst. “Trump and his son-in-law Jared Kushner put a lot of energy into that relationship”, which according to Van der Horst is mainly about oil and weapons. “He does not want to risk that.”

On the amounts that Trump cites in his statement, there is something wrong. He says, for example, that his arms deal of last year has directly generated $ 110 billion and will account for another $ 450 billion in the coming years.

But the US Department of State reported in early October that only $ 14.5 billion of that deal had been cashed. Fact check site Politifacts writes on the basis of historical defense figures that only a fraction of these deals have been realized.

President Donald Trump issued a statement yesterday, which declared “America First” considerations ruled out taking any further action against the Saudi Arabian regime over the brutal murder of dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi. The only US response has been token sanctions imposed last week on 17 Saudi individuals, who the regime itself had implicated in the crime: here.

SENATE PUSHES BACK ON SAUDI STATEMENT The Senate has asked Trump to find out whether Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman played a role in the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. The request, made by Republicans and Democrats, comes a day after Trump said the U.S. will continue to back Riyadh even if the crown prince ordered the killing. “We may never know all of the facts surrounding the murder of Mr. Jamal Khashoggi,” Trump said in a statement. “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 Washington Post’s publisher slammed the statement, saying Khashoggi “deserves better.” [HuffPost]

KHASHOGGI BODY ‘REMOVED IN LUGGAGE’ The dismembered body of journalist Jamal Khashoggi may have been transported out of Turkey in luggage, according to the Turkish defense minister. [HuffPost]