WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. President Joe Biden’s phone call with Saudi Arabia’s King Salman should take place “very soon,” White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki said on Thursday.
Biden’s call with the king is expected to coincide with the release of a U.S. intelligence report on the killing in October 2018 of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
The report is expected to be released soon and sources say it will single out Saudi Arabia’s crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, for approving Khashoggi’s death.
Psaki told reporters “there are a range of actions that are on the table” regarding Saudi Arabia as part of a shift in tone in the U.S.-Saudi relationship after the cozy ties between U.S. President Donald Trump’s White House and Riyadh.
“Our administration is focused on recalibrating the relationship,” Psaki said. “And certainly there are areas where we will express concerns and leave open the option of accountability. There are also areas where we will continue to work with Saudi Arabia given the threats they face in the region.”
(Reporting by Jarrett Renshaw and Steve Holland; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and Jonathan Oatis)
