WASHINGTON: US Pre­sident Donald Trump sent a strong message of support to the Saudi king and his heir on Sunday after the arrest of 11 princes on corruption charges.

The White House said President Trump conveyed this message in a telephone call to King Salman bin Abdulaziz.

A readout of the call, released by the White House, includes assurances of continued US support to the king and his policies, offers more “appropriate military equipment” when needed and backs his efforts to promote “moderation and tolerance”.

The readout did not directly mention the purge — “I’m not even going … to give you a useful answer”, said a White House official when asked to comment on the development. But the need for offering a blanket support to King Salman and his policies makes sense only when seen in the backdrop of the latest developments.

President Trump noted that the King and the Crown Prince’s recent public statements regarding the need to “build a moderate, peaceful and tolerant region are essential to ensuring a hopeful future for the Saudi people, to curtailing terrorist funding, and to defeating radical ideology — once and for all — so the world can be safe from its evil,” the White House said.

Published in Dawn, November 6th, 2017