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WASHINGTON – The disappearance of a Saudi dissident journalist has placed Steven Mnuchin, US Treasury Secretary, in an increasingly delicate position as he prepares to attend an investment conference at Riyadh next week.
Several senior Wall Street officials withdrew from the summit meeting, known as Davos in the Desert, but a finance ministry official said Monday that Mnuchin was still planning to attend. Mr. Mnuchin's participation in the fight against terrorist financing is part of a six-month movement in the Middle East that lasts a week.
This trip is essential to maintain good relations with Saudi Arabia as the two countries are trying to cooperate to fight illicit financial activities in the Middle East contributing to the financing of terrorism. But Mnuchin is now fighting against the economic and security benefits of staying alongside the Saudi government and taking the risk of witnessing the fate of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
Mr. Khashoggi has not been seen since entering the Saudi Arabian consulate in Istanbul on October 2nd. The Turkish authorities claimed that Mr. Khashoggi was killed and dismembered by Saudi agents. The Saudi government denied any wrongdoing and claimed that Mr. Khashoggi had left the consulate shortly after his arrival.
Mr. Mnuchin's staff is closely monitoring the situation and waiting for further evidence of Mr. Khashoggi's fate before making a final decision. However, the trip seemed more likely to move forward after President Trump had substantiated Saudi Arabia's refusal to deny responsibility for Khashoggi's disappearance, suggesting that "dishonest killers" might be to blame, and he sent his secretary of state to meet King Salman of Saudi Arabia.
On Monday, leaders of the Blackstone Group and BlackRock canceled their intention to attend a conference on investment in Saudi Arabia next week. They join Jamie Dimon of JPMorgan Chase as the last Wall Street titans to withdraw following the death and murder of Mr. Khashoggi.
Mnuchin's decision to attend is provoking criticism, including from lawmakers such as Florida Republican Sen. Marco Rubio, who said the Treasury Secretary's involvement would make the world understand that America approve the actions of Saudi Arabia. As the United States' top economic leader, Mr Mnuchin's presence would send a significant signal of how the United States views human rights issues.
But the timing of the conference comes at a delicate moment in economic diplomacy, making the decision even more cumbersome.
Treasury Department Monitors US Arsenal of Sanctions and Mnuchin Aggressively Urges US Allies to Step Up Pressure on Iran Following Trump's Withdrawal of International Agreement Signed in 2015 to limit its nuclear program. Saudi Arabia has supported this decision and its influence in the region is needed to help isolate Iran.
Another important factor is oil. Prices have skyrocketed this year and the prospect of an increase in fuel costs in the United States ahead of the November mid-term elections is problematic for Republicans. The relationship between Trump and the Saudis, with whom he has been courting last year, has been severely tested in recent months, after the president lobbied Saudi Arabia for the first time. It is increasing its oil production. Earlier this month, Mr. Trump raised his eyebrows when he suggested that Saudi Arabia spend more on defense.
"We are protecting Saudi Arabia," he said at a rally in Mississippi, adding that he had told King Salman that he would not stay two weeks without it. support of the US Army.
For Mr. Mnuchin, the tension comes from the anniversary of one of his flagship political projects: the Terrorist Financing Targeting Center, which was unveiled in Riyadh during his trip the year. last as a multinational attempt to combat illicit financial activities in the Middle East.
On this trip, Mr. Mnuchin was invited by Saudi Finance Minister Mohammed al-Jadaan and Governor of the Saudi Monetary Authority Ahmed al-Kholifey to a Golden Ritz-Carlton Conference Hall. , on the sidelines of the Future Investment Initiative.
At the conference, during which chocolate truffles and cardamom coffee flowed, Mnuchin praised the partnership with the Saudi government and said he was eager to return every year to ensure success of the center.
The former Treasury officials were divided on the wisdom of Mr. Mnuchin to go to Riyadh in the present circumstances.
Paul O'Neill, who was Treasury Secretary under President George W. Bush, said that Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's visit to Saudi Arabia could give Mr. Mnuchin the graceful opportunity to remove. He suggested that the conference itself would only bring little value to the secretary, since it has easy access to business leaders around the world.
"If it turns out that it is true that they caused the murder of a journalist, I can not imagine that the secretary of the treasury will be killed. in the air, "said O'Neill. "It's kind of a pledge, in that it's going away, that will reinforce what the president said, in terms of anger at them."
But making the trip could also be an opportunity for Mr. Mnuchin.
Elizabeth Rosenberg, research fellow at the Center for New American Security, said that increased engagement was crucial in this difficult diplomatic period. One of the options, she said, is for Mnuchin to ignore the investment conference and go to the terrorist financing center. The secretary, who planned to participate in a moderated discussion with Thomas Barrack, founder of Colony Capital, could choose to deliver a speech on human rights.
"I think that the US Treasury Secretary can always commit and not crush the credibility of the US position as a tough interlocutor," said Ms. Rosenberg, former senior advisor of the Department of Terrorist Financing and Financial Crimes. ministry.
However, she added, it would be a serious mistake to attend the conference and avoid the issue of human rights.
"It would be particularly embarrassing if all these people had withdrawn and that he would then have nothing more to say apart from a desire to participate," Rosenberg said.
