Raising eyebrows, security concerns as Kushner goes rogue in S Arabia

RIYADH: Jared Kusher abandoned protocol in Saudi Arabia, when he was not accompanied by US Embassy officials during his official meetings in Riyadh in late February, US Embassy officials told media.

Kusher, the son-in-law of President Donald Trump, is also a senior adviser to the president. He is tasked with brokering peace in the Middle East, a daunting task usually given to seasoned diplomats.

Kushner has made several unannounced visits to Saudi Arabia, often traveling with Middle East envoy Jason Greenblatt. On this recent trip, he met with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and King Salman to discuss the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, US-Saudi cooperation and economic investments in the region, according to the report.

It is customary that when a US official travels abroad, the local embassy will help coordinate the trip and provide security. However, “The Royal Court was handling the entire schedule,” a congressional source said. “But that is normal for his past trips.”

The White House responded to the report declaring that, “This reporting is not true and the sources are misinformed,” emphasizing that the embassy had been involved Kushner's meetings.

Kushner's high-level diplomatic meetings have caused some concern. Lawmakers said that they did not know what was discussed during the meetings. Naveed Jamali, a former FBI asset, said that Trump's administration had frequently “blurred the lines of communication” between government agencies by sending Kushner to meet and negotiate with international officials.

“We know there is a flawed system by the fact that Jared Kushner has a security clearance,” Jamali said in the report. Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW), a conservative watchdog group, has also questioned Kushner's security clearance. CREW called for an investigation of Kushner's security clearance.