White House: Saudi King’s Decision to Skip Summit Not a Snub
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SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) — The White House is downplaying the suggestion that the king of Saudi Arabia is snubbing President Obama by canceling plans to attend a high level summit with Arab leaders at Camp David on Thursday.
“All the feedback that we’ve received from the Saudis has been positive,” White House press secretary Josh Earnest said at Monday’s press briefing. He said the Saudis have not raised any concerns, either before or after King Salman changed his travel plans.
Four of the six rulers of the countries participating in the summit are skipping the event — a sign some say that they are displeased with the Obama administration’s nuclear talks with Iran.
Earnest downplayed the dropouts, saying that they are sending decision-makers in their stead.
“Having the senior security officials from each of these countries represented in a way that they can participate robustly in the discussion, represent the interest of their country, and follow through on any commitments that they make in the context of the meeting, gives us some confidence that this will be a worthwhile session,” he said.
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