Saudi Denounces U.S. Senate Vote Blaming Crown Prince for Murder

(Bloomberg) -- Saudi Arabia condemned the U.S. Senate vote to withdraw support for the kingdom’s war in Yemen and hold its crown prince responsible for the murder of Saudi columnist Jamal Khashoggi.

The Senate’s decision was “based upon unsubstantiated claims and allegations,” the Foreign Ministry said in a statement carried by the state-run Saudi Press Agency.

The Dec. 14 vote was a rebuke to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and to President Donald Trump, who has sought to play down the royal’s responsibility in Khashoggi’s murder at the hands of Saudi government agents in October.

“The kingdom categorically rejects any interference in its internal affairs, any and all accusations, in any manner, that disrespect its leadership represented by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques and the Crown Prince, and any attempts to undermine its sovereignty or diminish its stature,” the Saudi statement said.

The Senate vote, which is symbolic until adopted by the House of Representatives, may be followed by tougher action. A bipartisan group of senators say they’ll try again in 2019 to enact legislation to cut off arms sales to Saudi Arabia and sanction individuals involved in Khashoggi’s killing. The Washington Post columnist was murdered inside his country’s consulate in Istanbul on Oct. 2.

In its statement, Saudi Arabia listed its contributions to advancing U.S. interests, including joining its war on terrorism, helping to curtail Iran, and keeping oil markets well supplied.

“This position by the U.S. Senate sends the wrong messages to all those who want to cause a rift in the Saudi-U.S. relationship,” it said.

To contact the reporters on this story: Zainab Fattah in Dubai at zfattah@bloomberg.net;Zaid Sabah in Washington at zalhamid@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Alaa Shahine at asalha@bloomberg.net, Amy Teibel

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