By G9ija
The United States senators have accused President Donald Trump of putting “Saudi Arabia first” by his decision to not take punitive measures against the kingdom or Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman over the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
Trump’s decision is “yet another fawning prostration to a foreign authoritarian”, Democratic Senator Tim Kaine tweeted on Tuesday.
“It’s only a matter of time until actions like this one by the president directly threaten our security,” he added.
In a statement issued by the White House, Trump said the US intends to remain a “steadfast partner” of Saudi Arabia – even though “it could very well be” that Prince Mohammed had knowledge of Khashoggi’s killing.
“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,” Trump said.
He added he did not intend to cancel military deals with the kingdom, saying “if we foolishly cancel these contracts, Russia and China would be the enormous beneficiaries”.
Trump’s comments came despite pressure from US politicians who have called on the administration to do more to hold Saudi Arabia accountable. That pressure mounted following US media reports on Friday that said the CIA concluded Prince Mohammed, also known as MBS, ordered Khashoggi’s murder.