‘Great confidence’ in Saudi anti-corruption push: Trump

November 07, 2017 08:15 am | Updated 09:40 am IST - WASHINGTON

 U.S. President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania board Air Force One as they depart for Seoul, at U.S. Air Force Yokota base in Fussa, on the outskirts of Tokyo, Japan on November 7, 2017.

U.S. President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania board Air Force One as they depart for Seoul, at U.S. Air Force Yokota base in Fussa, on the outskirts of Tokyo, Japan on November 7, 2017.

President Donald Trump expressed “great confidence” in Saudi leaders on Monday amid what the kingdom describes as an ongoing anti-corruption push, writing in a tweet, “They know exactly what they are doing.”

In a two-part Twitter message sent from Tokyo, Mr. Trump said he has great confidence in King Salman and the Crown Prince, adding some of the arrested people “have been ‘milking’ their country for years!”

The Trump administration had been quiet about the unprecedented arrests of dozens of Saudi Arabia’s most powerful princes, military leaders and Ministers, which are widely being seen as a consolidation of power by the nation’s 32-year-old Crown Prince, Mohammed bin Salman. The crackdown began on Saturday with little warning.

Among those taken into custody were Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, one of the world’s richest men, and two of the late King Abdullah’s sons. The Saudi government has described the action as a sweeping effort to combat corruption.

Mohammad Bin Salman, who has been working to implement reforms in the oil-rich state, has developed a close relationship with White House senior adviser Jared Kushner.

The arrests come as the King and Crown Prince consolidate power in the kingdom.

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.