US President Donald Trump defended Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Tuesday over the 2018 killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, insisting the kingdom’s de facto ruler “knew nothing” about the murder as he welcomed him to the White House.

The United States and Saudi Arabia approved a civilian nuclear deal and the sale of F-35 jets as Trump sought to brush the murder and dismemberment of the Washington Post columnist under the carpet.

Trump raged at a journalist who asked the prince in the Oval Office about the case for “embarrassing” the Saudi royal on his first US trip since the murder, and called Khashoggi “extremely controversial.”

“A lot of people didn’t like that gentleman that you’re talking about,” he said.

“Whether you like him or didn’t like him, things happened, but he (the prince) knew nothing about it. And we can leave it at that. You don’t have to embarrass our guest by asking a question like that.”

The Saudi royal, who came bearing a pledge of a $1 trillion investment in the United States on his first US visit since the killing, said Khashoggi’s murder was “painful” and a “huge mistake.”

Trump’s comments were at odds with a US intelligence assessment in 2021 that concluded Prince Mohammed had ordered the operation to kill Khashoggi, who was murdered inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul. Saudi officials blamed rogue agents.

‘No justification’

The journalist’s widow, Hanan Elatr Khashoggi, said there was “no justification to murder my husband” and urged the Saudi prince to “meet me, apologise and compensate me.”

The killing during Trump’s first term caused a diplomatic crisis, but the US president made it clear he now wanted to paper over it as he boosts his relationship with the Saudis.

Trump called for US broadcaster ABC, whose journalist asked the question about Khashoggi’s murder, to have its licence revoked in a furious diatribe against the “crappy” company.

Earlier Trump, 79, pulled out all the stops to impress Prince Mohammed, 40, giving him a fly-by featuring US-made F-35 stealth fighters and thundering cannon fire.

The flattery continued inside the Oval Office, as Trump called the Saudi a “very good friend” and hailed him as being “incredible, in terms of human rights, and everything else.”

The two countries later signed a host of deals to deepen their cooperation.

The White House said they ratified a “civil nuclear energy cooperation deal” for a multi-billion-dollar partnership between the US and the kingdom that would last decades.

Trump also approved a “major defence sale package” that includes “future deliveries” of F-35s. They also agreed to share AI technology “while protecting US technology from foreign influence.”

The pomp continued later with a gala dinner hosted by First Lady Melania Trump. Portuguese football legend Cristiano Ronaldo, who plays in Saudi Arabia, will also be at the White House, a US official told AFP.

Business interests

Trump said he had also pushed Prince Mohammed to normalise relations with Israel through the Abraham Accords, as he seeks to turn the fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza into a longer-lasting regional peace.

The Saudi said he wanted to join the accords — Trump’s signature diplomatic achievement during his first term — but first needed a “clear path” to Palestinian statehood.

Prince Mohammed has fostered close ties with Trump and his family over the years, including through investment pledges to the property billionaire-turned-US president.

Trump denied any conflicts of interest, a day after a Saudi developer announced a new hotel partnership in the Maldives with the Trump Organization, which is run by his sons.

“I have nothing to do with the family business. I have left,” Trump said.