Biden—Amid Soaring Gas Prices—Wants ‘Reset’ Of Rocky Relationship With Saudis, Report Claims

Topline

President Joe Biden hopes to entirely recalibrate relations between the U.S. and Saudi Arabia, CNN reported Friday, a major policy reversal for Biden—who said on the campaign trail he hoped to make the nation a “pariah” over the 2018 assassination of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi—and the reason for the seismic shift can be traced to surging domestic gas prices.

Key Facts

Several senior U.S. officials told CNN the U.S. has indicated to Saudi Arabia that it seeks a complete “reset” in relations between the two countries.

One official told CNN the two countries have agreed it’s time to “move past” the murder of Khashoggi, who U.S. intelligence found was ordered to be killed by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the country’s de facto leader known by his initials “MBS,” causing a severing in relations between the two countries under Biden.

However, Biden is expected to meet with MBS in Saudi Arabia next month, according to several outlets, in the first presidential visit to the country since before Khashoggi’s murder.

Biden’s visit to Saudi Arabia has been linked to his eagerness to address record inflation and gas prices, and an official told CNN, “the desperation of the trajectory of the global economy is driving everything,” causing the White House to “throw principle out the door.”

Key Background

MBS denied his role in Khashoggi assassination in a February interview with the Atlantic, claiming it was “obvious” he didn’t order the murder of the journalist by downplaying his importance and that he didn’t “care” if Biden misunderstands him. Biden’s recent willingness to engage with MBS comes amid grim economic data stateside this week: Average U.S. gas prices topped $5 per gallon for the first time ever Thursday, while inflation is at its highest level since 1981, according to data from the Labor Department released Friday.

Crucial Quote

“The president has rediscovered the importance of stable oil and gas prices—and specifically the critical role played by Saudi Arabia,” Bob McNally, president of the Rapidan Energy Group and a former Bush Administration official told Bloomberg Thursday.

Chief Critic

Lawmakers and human rights organizations alike have lambasted the White House over Biden’s Saudi trip. Human Rights Watch says the visit threatens to enable Saudi Arabia to commit future human rights abuses, the watchdog wrote in a Thursday letter, while Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) told Politico Wednesday he’s “deeply against” any meeting with “that murderer” MBS.

Further Reading

US seeks full reset with Saudi Arabia, effectively moving on from the murder of Jamal Khashoggi (CNN)

Soaring Oil Prices Force Biden to Engage With Saudis He’d Spurned (Bloomberg)

All About Mohammed bin Salman, the Prince at the Center of US-Saudi Reset (Washington Post)