- The Washington Times - Monday, October 22, 2018

Presidential adviser Jared Kushner said Monday that he has advised Saudi Arabia’s crown prince to be open and honest about the killing of a dissident Saudi journalist in Turkey.

In an interview with CNN’s Van Jones, Mr. Kushner said he has told Crown Prince Muhammed bin Salman “to be fully transparent, and to take this very seriously.”

“We’ll see,” Mr. Kushner said. “Once we have all the facts, we’ll make an assessment.”

Asked if economic penalties are appropriate for Saudi Arabia, Mr. Kushner said the administration will wait for the outcome of investigations.

“I wouldn’t say our strategy in the Middle East relies on Saudi Arabia,” he said. “We’re always readjusting and reassessing, and will continue to do so.”

President Trump and Mr. Kushner have been under criticism for promoting close ties between the U.S. and Saudi Arabia in the wake of the killing of Jamal Khashoggi, a journalist who was killed in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on Oct. 2. Saudi Arabia says it has detained 18 people for involvement in the killing, and has fired two advisers who were close to the crown prince.

Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister said the top levels of his government didn’t know that the killing would take place.

Asked if he believes Saudi Arabia is deceiving the U.S., Mr. Kushner replied, “We have our eyes wide open. Every day we deal with people who are trying to deceive us in different ways.”

• Dave Boyer can be reached at dboyer@washingtontimes.com.

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