◀ anchor ▶
On his first trip to the Middle East since taking office, US President Biden met Saudi Crown Prince bin Salman.
Crown Prince bin Salman has been blamed for the brutal assassination of Khashoggi, a journalist who criticized the royal family four years ago.
Reporter Jung Young-hoon explains why Biden, who had promised to isolate Saudi Arabia in this case, changed his position and found the Crown Prince first.
◀ Report ▶
US President Joe Biden raises his fist to say hello.
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, 36.
He has been blamed for the brutal murder of Jamal Khashoggi, a dissident journalist who criticized the Saudi royal family in 2018.
President Biden, since his presidential campaign, has vowed to isolate Saudi Arabia from the international community.
Then, from the beginning of the meeting, a barrage of questions from reporters continued to Biden, who changed his position and came to the Crown Prince.
“Are you going to apologize to the Jamal Khashoggi family?”
“Is Saudi Arabia still ‘bullying’?”
Even at the official press conference, Biden had to sweat.
[조 바이든/미국 대통령]
(Aren’t you regretting the idea of isolating Saudi Arabia internationally?)
“Not at all. Next question?”
President Biden’s visit this time is interpreted as a request for Saudi Arabia to increase oil production in response to the surge in oil prices due to the Ukraine war.
There are also observations that it is a paving stone to check China and Russia, which are expanding their influence in the Middle East.
[조 바이든/미국 대통령]
“We’re not leaving a gap in the Middle East for Russia or China to hit. We’re getting real results.”
The United States has agreed to strengthen military cooperation with Saudi Arabia.
China, which has worked hard in the Middle East, including Saudi Arabia, has expressed its vigilance by saying that ‘the countries in the Middle East must develop independently.’
President Biden asked the Crown Prince’s father, the King, to shake hands, but as if conscious of public opinion, he shook hands with the Crown Prince.
Regarding this meeting, which was said to be in the national interest, the American media also criticized it with ridicule, saying it was “worse than a handshake.”
This is Young-Hoon Jung from MBC News.
Video editing: Lee Sang-min
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