美国总统特朗普表示，他将派遣国务卿蓬佩奥与沙特国王萨勒曼会面。此前沙特当局否认知道一名沙特记者两周前进入沙特驻伊斯坦布尔领事馆后失踪的一事。
特朗普周一在推特上说，“刚刚与沙特阿拉伯国王通话，他否认对‘我们沙特阿拉伯公民'可能发生的任何事情有任何了解，”特朗普总统援引萨勒曼的话说，沙特“正在与土耳其密切合作，寻找答案。”特朗普还表示，将”立即派遣”蓬佩奥到利雅得与沙特国王举行更多会谈。
土耳其总统埃尔多安和萨勒曼周日讨论组建一个联合工作组，调查记者贾马尔·卡舒吉失踪一案。土耳其官员认为，卡舒吉10月2日在沙特阿拉伯驻伊斯坦布尔领事馆被沙特特工谋杀。
沙特称这些指控“毫无根据”，并称卡舒吉自己离开了领事馆。不过土耳其和沙特都没有提供明确的证据来支持各自的说法。
特朗普在接受美国哥伦比亚广播公司新闻节目“60分钟”时表示，如果确定卡舒吉在沙特领事馆内被杀，将会采取“严厉惩罚”，但据沙特官方通讯社援引未具名的消息来源说，利雅得对美国的威胁予以反击，声称如果特朗普对沙特阿拉伯采取任何行动，将会进行报复。
卡舒吉之前流亡在美国，并在为“华盛顿邮报”撰写的专栏中批评沙特王储穆罕默德·本·萨勒曼。
特朗普总统说“没有人知道”领事馆内发生了什么事，“但我们可能会知道萨尔曼是否下令谋杀卡舒吉。特朗普补充说，“如果情况属实，美国会非常不满和愤怒。”
数位美国商界领袖已决定退出下周在利雅得举行的“未来投资倡议”大会，以示对卡舒吉失踪的抗议。这个被称为“沙漠中的达沃斯”的会议是仿效瑞士举行的世界经济论坛举办的。不过白宫经济顾问库德洛表示，美国财政部长努钦仍计划前往。
“华盛顿邮报”最近几天报道说，土耳其政府曾通知美国官员，他们拥有视频录像，可以证明卡舒吉在领事馆内被杀，但尚未将其公之于众。
U.S. President Donald Trump says he is dispatching Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to meet with Saudi King Salman after the monarch denied any knowledge about the disappearance of a Saudi journalist last seen two weeks ago entering the country's consulate in Istanbul.
Trump said Monday on Twitter, "Just spoke to the King of Saudi Arabia who denies any knowledge of whatever may have happened 'to our Saudi Arabian citizen,'" The U.S. leader quoted Salman as saying his country is "working closely with Turkey to find answer," adding Trump is "immediately sending" Pompeo to to Riyadh for more talks with the king.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Salman on Sunday discussed forming a joint working group to look into the disappearance of the journalist, Jamal Khashoggi, whom Turkish officials believe was murdered by Saudi agents October 2 at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul.
Saudi Arabia calls the allegations "baseless" and says Khashoggi left the consulate on his own, although neither Turkey nor Saudi Arabia has provided clear evidence to support its version of events.
Trump told the CBS news show 60 Minutes there would be "severe punishment" if it is determined Khashoggi was killed inside the Saudi consulate, but Riyadh dismissed the U.S. threat and said it would retaliate if Trump took any action against Saudi Arabia, according to an unnamed source quoted by Saudi Press Agency
Khashoggi was living in self-imposed exile in the United States and had criticized Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in columns written for The Washington Post.
Trump said "nobody knows yet" what happened inside the consulate, "but we'll probably be able to find out" if Salman ordered Khashoggi's murder. Trump added the United States "would be very upset and angry if that were the case."
In protest of Khashoggi's disappearance, several U.S. businesses leaders have pulled out of next week's Future Investment Initiative in Riyadh, dubbed "Davos in the Desert," after the annual meeting of world economic interests in Switzerland. However White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow said the Treasury chief is still planning to go.
The Washington Post reported in recent days that the Turkish government informed U.S. officials it was in possession of video recordings that prove Khashoggi was killed inside the consulate, but have not made them public.
