According to an Arab website, the Saudi Crown Prince hoped that his brother’s visit to the United States and his meeting with Saudi official would be the reopening of a new page in Riyadh’s engagement with the US government, but Washington’s approach has disappointed him.
Last week, Khalid bin Salman, the younger brother of the Saudi Crown Prince and Deputy Secretary of Defense, traveled to the United States.
A source close to the Saudi royal office told the Saudi Leaks website that Washington’s interaction with Khalid bin Salman had left Riyadh frustrated.
The source added, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman had hoped that his brother’s visit to the United States and his meeting with US officials would be a reopening of a new page of engagement with the US government led by Joe Biden but its results have led to the disappointment of Muhammad bin Salman.
The government should have repeatedly rejected Khalid bin Salman’s request for a direct contact channel between Biden and Mohammed bin Salman, and sought to keep Khalid bin Salman’s trip to the United States out of the limelight as much as possible.
The website added that Khalid bin Salman was unable to meet with members of Congress because the atmosphere in the congress was unfriendly to Saudi Arabia for reasons such as the Yemeni war and the killing of critical journalist Jamal Khashgechi.
Khashgechi was assassinated in October 2018 after arriving at the Riyadh consulate in Istanbul by an assassination team from Saudi Arabia to Turkey – and according to media reports – his body was mutilated.
Disclosure of documents of UAE provocations against Saudi Arabia
In another report, US officials revealed that US officials had leaked documents proving the US embassy’s provocations against Saudi Arabia and their foreign policy in recent months.
The report quoted a diplomatic source as saying that US officials had shown the documents to Khalid bin Salman and that the UAE was trying to tarnish Saudi Arabia‘s image in US political circles and media.
Among the issues addressed by the UAE embassy were Riyadh’s decision to reconcile with Qatar, as well as Saudi oil policies and its agreement with Russia on oil production.