Khashoggi's fiance slams Biden's 'saddening and enraging' Saudi Arabia trip

Fiancée of murdered Saudi dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi has called frequent media reports of the expected meeting between US president Biden and Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman “saddening and enraging”. 

“The decision to take up this meeting is maddening to me, and to supporters of freedom and justice everywhere” said Hatice Cengiz in an interview with CNN on Saturday. 

“If President Biden meets the crown prince, he will have lost his moral compass - something which saddens me to say,” she commented. 

Cengiz had previously charged the US with the task of undertaking an international investigation into the killing of her fiancé, Jamal Khashoggi, at the hands of Saudi officials in Turkey in 2018. 

"Politically and ethically the USA is the country that is responsible,” said Cengiz about the role of the US in pursuing justice for Khashoggi’s death.

As a presidential candidate, Biden had promised to turn the Gulf kingdom into a ‘pariah’ state after Saudi officials, including Crown Prince and de facto leader Mohammad bin Salman, were accused of being involved in the brutal murder.

US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) has previously concluded that the crown prince was giving the orders behind the killing. 

Ties between the two countries were also strained because of Biden’s perceived failure to support Riyadh in the Yemen war. 

However, the global energy crisis, compounded by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, has forced Biden to reconsider his options with the world's top oil exporter. 

Biden is now expected to meet bin Salman during a visit to Israel and Saudi Arabia that was originally slated for later this month. The trip has reportedly been postponed until July and the White House is reportedly planning a broader trip to the region at that time.