• Middle East Turkey closes Khashoggi murder case and leaves it in Saudi hands

Jamal Khashoggi

has been definitively buried.

Metaphorically speaking.

Shaking hands this Thursday night, the Turkish leader and the Saudi crown prince put behind them the scandal over the disappearance and dismemberment of the columnist and critic at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul.

In a display of

realpolitik

amid economic turmoil, Ankara opted to settle its pending accounts with Riyadh with a two-day visit to the Desert Kingdom.

It was the first in five years.

A hiatus during which the Turks sided with the Qataris in the regional dispute between them and the Saudis, welcomed members of the Muslim Brotherhood -enemies of the House of Saud- and, above all, did everything possible so that the The world knew that a high-ranking palace official had ordered Khashoggi's death.

But suddenly, three weeks ago, a Turkish court ordered the dossier of the case to be transferred to Saudi Arabia, reducing the chances of doing justice to a minimum.

Late on Thursday, the Turkish government published the first photos of

Recep Tayyip Erdogan

in Saudi Arabia.

Dressed in the ritual white garment and accompanied by his entourage, including his defense minister, the Turkish president went to Mecca to comply with all Islamic precepts.

It was, above all, a ceremonial journey.

The Turkish leader met first with Saudi monarch Salman and later with the designated successor to the throne,

Mohammad Bin Salman.

"Start a new era"

"As twinned countries with historical, cultural and human ties, we strive to increase all kinds of political, military and economic relations between us and start a new era," Erdogan posted on his Twitter account.

Some ties that, according to Turkey, wants to extend to the entire region: "We express on every occasion that we attach as much importance to the stability and security of our brothers in the Gulf region as to our own," Erdogan said.

Between the lines, one can read a Turkish retreat in line with other previous gestures, with which Ankara tries to

cushion the consequences of the economic crisis

that began to suffer in 2018, characterized by the fall in foreign investment and the strong devaluation of the lira. turkish

Consequently, Erdogan has moderated the tone with Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt or Israel, countries with which he had feuds in recent years.

With some of them, today he seeks to strengthen ties.

Trade relations between Turkey and Saudi Arabia have plummeted since October 2018, when it was discovered that Riyadh had sent a murder squad to Istanbul to kill, dismember and disappear Khashoggi's remains.

Even though the US avoided sanctioning Riyadh over the scandal, Turkey insisted on its desire to hold the culprits accountable.

In response, the Saudis de facto sanctioned Turkey.

Turkish exports to Saudi Arabia fell by 92% during 2021

These numbers have been improving since the beginning of the year.

Exports rose 25% during the first quarter of 2022, experiencing a year-on-year growth of 215% last March.

In return, Turkey hopes that Saudi hydrocarbon reserves will help alleviate the sharp increase in energy prices, responsible in part for the strong inflation that is shaking the country.

In addition, Saudi Arabia is a major source of tourists.

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