Mnuchin Meets Saudi Crown Prince in Riyadh Amid Controversy Over Khashoggi Death

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - The meeting took place on the sidelines of an anti-terrorism conference in the Saudi capital of Riyadh, which US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin agreed to attend despite pulling out of a separate Saudi-sponsored investment conference to protest the Khashoggi killing.

According to a readout by the government’s Saudi Press Agency (SPA) that avoided any mention of tensions over the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, Steven Mnuchin met with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to discuss a strategic partnership between the two nations,

"During the meeting, they stressed the importance of the Saudi-US strategic partnership and the future role of this partnership in accordance with the Kingdom's Vision 2030," the SPA said. "The bilateral relations between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United States of America were also reviewed on both the trade and investment sides and the opportunities for their development."

The meeting touched on a number of issues, including joint efforts in the fight against corruption and the financing of terrorism, the SPA readout explained.

The SPA made no mention of the October 2 killing of Khashoggi at a Saudi consulate in Istanbul — an incident that has since plunged Saudi relations with the United States and other Western nations into crisis.

Turkey claims Khashoggi was tortured to death by a hit-squad of Saudi operatives with close ties to bin Salman, while the Saudis claim the Washington Post columnist was accidentally killed.

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