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Khashoggi Disappearance: Saudi Arabia Transfers $100MM to US on Day of Pompeo Visit

Khashoggi Disappearance: Saudi Arabia Transfers $100MM to US on Day of Pompeo Visit
folder_openMiddle East... access_time5 years ago
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The United States received a payment of $100 million from Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, the same day Secretary of State Mike Pompeo arrived in Riyadh to discuss the disappearance of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, a State Department official confirmed Wednesday amid global calls for answers in the case.

The timing of the transfer, first reported by The New York Times, raised questions about a potential payoff as Riyadh seeks to manage the blowback over allegations that Saudi agents were responsible for Khashoggi's disappearance. The State Department denied any connection between the payment and Pompeo's discussions with Saudi officials about Khashoggi, a Washington Post contributing columnist.

Saudi Arabia, an oil rich monarchy and staunch US ally, has long relied on its financial largesse to persuade partners to support its foreign policy objectives. Western diplomats suspect that the kingdom will also compensate Turkey for its willingness to launch a joint investigation on Khashoggi's disappearance – a payback that could come in the form of large-scale debt relief, strategic buyouts or other arrangements that boost Turkey's ailing economy.

Khashoggi's disappearance has hurt the reputation of Saudi Arabia's crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, whose close relationship with President Donald Trump's son-in-law and senior adviser Jared Kushner has put him at the center of the administration's Middle East policy.

Turkish authorities say Khashoggi was killed Oct. 2 during a visit to the Saudi consulate in Istanbul to obtain a document required to get married.

Trump initially promised "severe punishment" for Saudi Arabia if the United States determined that Saudi agents killed Khashoggi. But the president has since floated an alternative theory involving "rogue killers".

"Here we go again with you know you're guilty until proven innocent," Trump told The Associated Press in an interview on Tuesday.

During Pompeo's visit to Saudi Arabia, the top diplomat and the crown prince smiled for the cameras and emphasized the two countries' mutual interests. When asked if he had learned any details about Khashoggi's disappearance, Pompeo told reporters that "I don't want to talk about any of the facts; they didn't want to, either, in that they want to have the opportunity to complete this investigation in a thorough way."

Middle East experts said the timing of the transfer likely sent a clear message to the Trump administration.

"In all probability, the Saudis want Trump to know that his cooperation in covering for the Khashoggi affair is important to the Saudi monarch," said Joshua Landis, a professor at the University of Oklahoma. "Much of its financial promises to the US will be contingent on this cooperation."

The Saudi Embassy in Washington did not respond to requests for comment.

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team

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