Biden downplays Saudi Crown Prince meeting; Saudis immediately respond

Biden downplays Saudi Crown Prince meeting; Saudis immediately respond

On Friday, President Biden attempted to downplay his first face-to-face meeting with the Saudi Crown Prince and de facto ruler of the Kingdom since Khashoggi’s death, saying discussions will take place as part of a broader “international meeting”.

“I’m not going to meet with MBS. I’m going to an international meeting. And he’s going to be a part of it, just like there were people part of the discussion today,” Biden claimed. He stressed that the reason for the trip to Riyadh is not to meet the crown prince per se. This also following the dubious White House assertions that it’s not about pressing the Saudis to pump more oil.

When Biden was asked by reporters about how he’s going to address and handle the Khashoggi killing with MbS, the president simply replied – “The same way I’ve been handling it,” but without explanation.

Biden is expected to attend a meeting of Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) heads of state; however, recent reporting in CBS News contradicts Biden’s assertion that he isn’t going to meet with MbS, given it seems the Saudis have it in their minds that a meeting will indeed happen:

The Saudis say Mr. Biden will meet separately with both King Salman