American intelligence had already reached in the past a “medium-high level” belief on the implication of the controversial Saudi prince (considering him the principal) but had not released any official document, while Donald Trump had done everything to save the image of bin Salman after choosing him as his main ally in the Middle East region, along with Israel.
The position of Prince bin Salman MBS has always denied any involvement but accepted responsibility as the country’s de facto leader, albeit without any serious consequences. Now, however, he risks another damage to his image and of no longer being a partner of the White House. In fact, Joe Biden intends to keep relations not with him but with his father, the 85-year-old King Salman, who should call shortly for the first time, informing him in advance of the embarrassing relationship of the 007 USA.
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Biden towards a change of gear in relations with Riyadh “He is his counterpart”, underlined the White House confirming the publication of the report. Moreover, the American president has already said that he wants to recalibrate relations with Riyadh, from the reopening of the Iranian nuclear agreement to the stop of support for the Saudis in the war in Yemen. Without giving in to human rights. During the election campaign, Biden had openly accused bin Salman of killing Khashoggi, promising in the event of victory that he would not sell weapons to the Saudis and that he would make them “the pariahs that they are”.
Now it will be necessary to see what consequences the conclusion of the US 007 will have. Jake Sullivan, the National Security Advisor, said in an interview with CNN last week that the administration intends to accompany the release of the report with “one more response” against individuals held responsible for the murder, without further details. . Human rights activists and Saudi dissidents are pushing for new sanctions. But according to experts, they are unlikely to target the prince. And even if Biden wanted to challenge him, some analysts note, it’s unclear who could take his place after MBS silenced or jailed most of his political rivals.
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