Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Wednesday suggested that the $2 billion investment the Saudi government made in Jared Kushner’s private-equity fund would not be affected by a theoretical second term for former President Trump.
In a rare interview with Fox News’s Bret Baier, bin Salman defended the government-controlled Public Investment Fund’s (PIF) investment in the firm Kushner — Trump’s son-in-law — started after leaving his post as a White House adviser.
“It’s a commitment that the PIF [has], and the PIF [has] commitment[s] with any investor around the globe to keep it,” bin Salman said when asked whether he would move the money should Trump, who currently leads the 2024 GOP primary field, were elected president for another term.
Kushner — who had a close relationship with the Saudi crown prince – accepted the investment just six months after leaving office, raising concerns about the appearance of an improper quid pro quo.
Asked about the appearance of the investment, bin Salman said, “We look to opportunities and investment. We have investment, a lot of investment around the globe with a lot of peoples and with economical opportunity.”
He also brushed off concerns about any apparent impropriety and claimed most prominent figures around the world have some sort of connection to Saudi Arabia.
“Saudi Arabia is so big, so I’m quite sure mostly any person around the world, directly or indirectly, you have something to do with Saudi Arabia,” bin Salman said when asked whether the investment could affect a theoretical new Trump administration.
“So if [that’s] going to affect President Trump decision, if he becomes president … [it’s] going to affect every president in the world and every person in the world’s decision, because directly or indirectly,” the crown prince added.
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