MOSCOW: Saudi Arabia will search for another source of arms supplies to protect its territory and people if the country’s allies introduce a ban on weapon sales to Riyadh over the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in Turkey, the Saudi foreign minister told the Asharq al-Awsat newspaper in a interview released on Tuesday.
On October 25, the European Parliament adopted a resolution calling for all EU members to introduce an arms embargo on the kingdom in retaliation for Khashoggi’s murder, noting that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman was unlikely to have been unaware of the prepared crime. “The Kingdom is committed to defending its territory, borders and people against any regional threats.
We prefer to be armed by our allies, but Saudi Arabia’s commitment to defend its land and people obligates it to obtain the weapons its needs from any source,” Adel Jubeir was quoted as saying by the outlet.
Amid the international uproar over the journalist’s murder, the Norwegian Defense Ministry already announced in early November that it would not grant new licenses for the export of defense-related items to Riyadh. German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Belgian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander De Croo spoke for banning arms supplies to the kingdom as well.
Khashoggi went missing on October 2, after he entered the Saudi consulate in Istanbul. Riyadh initially denied any knowledge of the journalist’s whereabouts, however, later in October, the Saudi authorities admitted that Khashoggi had died in a fight inside the consulate.
On November 15, the Saudi Prosecutor General’s Office said that the journalist had been killed with a drug injection and his body had been dismembered and taken out of the consulate, adding that a total of 21 people had been detained in relation to the case. (Sputnik)
