Rishi Sunak to meet Saudi leader Mohammed bin Salman in first UK visit since murder of Jamal Khashoggi
Rishi Sunak and Saudi Arabia’s crown prince Mohammed bin Salman have expressed enthusiasm for their planned in-person meeting, despite concerns about the Gulf leader’s visit to the UK.
News the prince is planning to visit the Prime Minister this year sparked condemnation amid concerns over his country’s human rights record.
It would be the first official visit of the royal, who has been accused of being a de-facto dictator and of ordering the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018.
Prince Mohammed denies allegations that he ordered the killing of Mr Khashoggi.
But, in a call on Thursday, Mr Sunak stressed a desire to deepen ties with Saudi Arabia as Europe turns away from Russian oil and gas.
No 10 said the two said they “looked forward to meeting in person at the earliest opportunity”.
They are also due to meet at the upcoming G20 Summit in India.
A Downing Street spokeswoman said Mr Sunak “welcomed the opportunity to speak to the Crown Prince and looked forward to personally deepening the long-standing ties” between the nations.
She noted that Saudi Arabia “continues to go through a period of profound social and economic transformation under Vision 2030”.
“The leaders discussed their commitment to further develop our trade and investment relationship, including by collaborating in new cutting-edge industries, and to strengthen our close co-operation on defence and security,” she said.
“The Prime Minister reiterated the UK’s long-standing commitment to support Saudi Arabia’s security and regional stability.”
The spokeswoman added that Mr Sunak had noted Saudi Arabia’s “constructive and positive leadership on Ukraine” and “welcomed progress on the conflict in Yemen, where the UK will continue to back efforts to extend the ceasefire and alleviate the humanitarian crisis”.
“The Prime Minister and Crown Prince said they would continue working closely together to progress UK-Saudi co-operation and looked forward to meeting in person at the earliest opportunity,” the spokeswoman said.
The Times first revealed plans for a formal visit from the Saudi prince on Wednesday. It is understood the visit has been pencilled in before the end of 2023 and will include a meeting with King Charles as well as talks with ministers.
The UK Government was accused of “rolling out the red carpet to dictators”.
Government sources told i the trip had not been formally confirmed but said the Saudi leader had been invited to Britain and was expected to accept.
Liberal Democrat MP Alistair Carmichael told i: “What is the point in boasting about our energy independence one week if you then go cap-in-hand to the murderous regime in Saudi Arabia the next? Rolling out the red carpet to dictators shows just how weak our Government has become.
“When Boris Johnson went to Saudi Arabia last year he was welcomed with a swathe of public executions – a symbol of how little our government’s posturing over human rights matters to the crown prince. We can expect the same shameful spectacle to play out again.”
