White House refuses to call Saudi leader MBS a 'killer' after Biden called Putin one

• The White House declined to say whether Biden views MBS as a "killer."
• A US intelligence report said MBS ordered the operation that led to the killing of Jamal Khashoggi.
• Biden recently referred to Putin as a "killer," leading Russia to recall its US ambassador.

The White House on Thursday declined to refer to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman as a "killer," though a recently declassified US intelligence report said he ordered the operation that led to the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

President Joe Biden referred to Russian President Vladimir Putin, whose critics sometimes end up poisoned or dead, as a "killer" in a recent interview. When asked if Biden would use the same word to characterize Prince Mohammed, popularly known as MBS, White House press secretary Jen Psaki during Thursday's briefing said, "I don't think I need to add more killer names from the podium."

Biden's remarks on Putin led Russia to recall its ambassador from the US - a major diplomatic snub. Psaki said Biden does not regret calling Putin a "killer."

-Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) March 18, 2021

Biden has faced criticism for not sanctioning Prince Mohammed, the de facto ruler of Saudi Arabia, following the release of the report on Khashoggi's brutal killing. It was already widely agreed upon that the Saudi leader had ordered the killing, but the release of the report in late February represented a formal, public recognition of this by the US government.

Khashoggi, a Washington Post columnist at the time of his death, was killed by agents of his own government in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul in October 2018. Over two years after his killing, Khashoggi's remains have still not been located.

The Biden administration did issue sanctions against Gen. Ahmed al-Asiri, a former deputy head of the Saudi intelligence services, and the Saudi Rapid Intervention Force (RIF) over their involvement in Khashoggi's killing. The State Department also issued a new visa policy that included restrictions on 76 Saudis "believed to have been engaged in threatening dissidents overseas, including but not limited to the Khashoggi killing."

Though Biden on the campaign trail pledged to make Saudi Arabia a "pariah" over the killing, he ultimately let Prince Mohammed off the hook.

The White House defended its actions by underscoring the importance of the diplomatic relationship between Washington and Riyadh. The US has long viewed Saudi Arabia as an important security partner in the Middle East and a vital buffer against Iran, a country both governments view as a major threat. But the benefits of the US-Saudi relationship have come under increasing scrutiny in Washington since Khashoggi's killing, which fostered bipartisan condemnation of Prince Mohammed.

The Biden administration has pledged to recalibrate the US-Saudi relationship, and the president last month announced the US would stop supporting the Saudi-led coalition in the Yemen conflict.