Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin Says He Won't Attend Saudi Conference

Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin became the latest person to drop out of an upcoming investment conference in Saudi Arabia. Mnuchin is the latest high-profile VIP to announce he's staying home from the event following a global outcry over the disappearance of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi. 

In a tweet posted Thursday morning, Mnuchin wrote he was joining several other Wall Street and international leaders in not participating in the annual conference known as "Davos in the Desert." 

"Just met with @realDonaldTrump and @SecPompeo and we have decided, I will not be participating in the Future Investment Initiative summit in Saudi Arabia," Mnuchin wrote. 

A host of Silicon Valley leaders, Wall Street power players, and other organizations have dropped out of the conference. Some of the notable names include: 

  • JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon
  • Blackstone CEO Stephen Schwarzman
  • CEO of Uber Dara Khosrowshahi
  • Virgin Group founder Richard Branson
  • Ford Chairman Bill Ford
  • CEO of BlackRock Larry Fink
  • CEO of MasterCard
  • CEO of Viacom
  • Christine Lagarde, managing director of the International Monetary Fund
  • CNBC
  • The New York Times
  • Bloomberg
  • CNN
  • Financial Times

The event was scheduled to begin on Tuesday in the Saudi Arabian capital of Dubai. 

The outcry began after Khashoggi, a Saudi Arabian dissident who wrote for The Washington Post, disappeared after entering the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on Oct. 2. Authorities in Turkey say the Saudi government killed then dismembered the journalist. 

The Saudi government has denied being involved in Khashoggi's disappearance and have vowed to find the people responsible. 

President Donald Trump told reporters Wednesday that Khashoggi could have been targeted by "rogue killers." On Twitter Thursday morning, the president wrote that his administration would await the results from Turkey's and Saudi Arabia's investigations into the disappearance. 

"Secretary of State Mike Pompeo returned last night from Saudi Arabia and Turkey. I met with him this morning wherein the Saudi situation was discussed in great detail, including his meeting with the Crown Prince. He is waiting for the results of the investigations being done by the Saudis and Turkey, and just gave a news conference to that effect," Trump wrote on Twitter

The secretary of state was dispatched to Saudi Arabia by Trump earlier this week to meet with officials there to inquire about The Washington Post journalist's disappearance. 

Pompeo told reporters at the White House on Thursday that Saudi authorities told him they would conduct thorough investigation of Khashoggi's disappearance and will do so in a "timely fashion." 

Pompeo said he told President Trump the U.S. should give Saudi Arabia "a few more days" to investigate the journalist's disappearance. 

Photo: Getty Images


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