Biden needs Saudi support, and that could make it tough to pressure Riyadh on human rights: Atlantic Council CEO

Biden needs Saudi support, and that could make it tough to pressure Riyadh on human rights: Atlantic Council CEO

U.S. President Joe Biden is caught between "two opposing forces" when it comes to Saudi Arabia, according to Frederick Kempe, president and CEO of the Atlantic Council.

During his presidential campaign, Biden said Washington would make Riyadh the "pariah that they are" and hold the kingdom accountable on human rights issues. However, the president now sees that Saudi Arabia's support is important for his agenda in the Middle East region, Kempe said.

"If you want to contain Iran, if you want to build upon the positive impact of Arab-Israeli normalization through the Abraham Accords “¦ if you want to bring some peace to Syria and Yemen, there's hardly anything you can get done in the Middle East [without Riyadh]," Kempe told CNBC's "Capital Connection" on Tuesday.

"Let's not forget controlling oil prices so that you can actually have stable prices for the energy transition to renewables, none of that can be done without Saudi Arabia, so how do you implement your human rights policy?" he said.

The U.S. last week imposed visa restrictions on 76 Saudis who are "believed to have been engaged in threatening dissidents overseas, including but not limited to the Khashoggi killing."

But, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has not been