US defends not sanctioning MBS for Khashoggi’s murder

US State Department spokesman says Biden seeks to ‘recalibrate’ not ‘rupture’ US-Saudi Arabia relations.

The Biden administration on Monday defended its decision not to apply sanctions on Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) for the 2018 killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi. “We are working to put the US Saudi relationship on the right footing,” State Department spokesman Ned Price said at a news conference in Washington defending the Biden administration’s decision not to sanction the crown prince, who is the de facto ruler of Saudi Arabia. The Biden administration is seeking to “recalibrate”, not “rupture” the US-Saudi relationship, Price said.