Trump discussed Khashoggi response with Turkey's Erdogan: White House official

PARIS: United States President Donald Trump and his Turkish counterpart Tayyip Erdogan discussed how to respond to the killing last month of Saudi Arabian dissident Jamal Khashoggi, a White House official said on Sunday.

The conversation took place during a Saturday dinner with heads of state gathered in Paris to mark the World War One Armistice centenary.

Trump expects to form a “much stronger opinion” by next week on Khashoggi’s killing and Washington’s response, he said on Nov. 7 – adding that he was working with Congress, Turkey and Saudi Arabia to establish who bore responsibility.

Read More: Turkey’s Erdogan says Khashoggi tapes given to key foreign nations

Turkey had given recordings related to the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi to Saudi Arabia, the United States, Germany, France and Britain, President Tayyip Erdogan said on November 10.

Turkish sources had said previously that authorities have an audio recording purportedly documenting the murder.

Khashoggi, a Washington Post columnist critical of the Saudi government disappeared at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on Oct. 2.

Speaking ahead of his departure for France to attend commemorations to mark the 100th anniversary of the end of World War One, Erdogan called on Saudi Arabia to identify the killer from among a 15-man team that arrived in Turkey some days before Khashoggi’s killing.

“There’s no need to distort this issue, they know for certain that the killer, or the killers, is among these 15 people. Saudi Arabia’s government can disclose this by making these 15 people talk,” Erdogan said.

Erdogan also accused Mojeb — who visited Istanbul to discuss the investigation with his Turkish counterpart and make inspections in the Istanbul consulate— of refusing to cooperate, in turn delaying the inquiry.