Jared Kushner, Donald Trump's son-in-law and former adviser, has defended his business dealings with Saudi Arabia following a $2bn (£1.59bn) investment from the kingdom's sovereign wealth fund into his private equity firm, Affinity Partners.
Speaking at a Miami summit organised by US news outlet Axios, Mr Kushner dismissed any suggestion that the investment, which took place after he left the White House, represented a conflict of interest. He challenged critics to point to a single decision made during his time in office that was not in America's interest.
Ethical questions have been raised about the deal, given Mr Kushner's close work with Saudi Arabia during the Trump administration. Experts cited his earlier dealings with the kingdom and the former president's veto of bills that would have banned weapons sales to Saudi Arabia during its war in Yemen.
Asked about the murder of Jamal Khashoggi and declassified US intelligence reports that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman approved the killing, Mr Kushner initially retorted, 'Are we really still doing this?' He described the killing as 'absolutely horrific' but said he has not seen the intelligence reports and characterised the crown prince as a 'visionary leader' whose reforms in the region have been 'transformational'.
Looking ahead, Mr Kushner said he is not interested in returning to the White House if Mr Trump wins November's presidential election, stating that his focus is on his firm.
