22 Oct 2018 11:41

Preparations for Putin's visit to S. Arabia continuing - Russian Foreign Ministry

MOSCOW. Oct 22 (Interfax) - Preparations for Russian President Vladimir Putin's visit to Saudi Arabia are continuing, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister and Special Presidential Representative for the Middle East and Africa Mikhail Bogdanov said on Monday.

"Yes, we have a visit [planned], and a high-level interagency delegation has traveled" to Saudi Arabia as part of these preparations, Bogdanov told journalists in Moscow, when asked by Interfax whether the preparations for Putin's visit to Saudi Arabia were continuing amid the ongoing investigation into the death of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

Bogdanov acknowledged that the Khashoggi case has caused quite a stir around the world but called for waiting for the results of the ongoing investigation.

"We are waiting for final results of the investigation, and so it's necessary to be patient and wait," Bogdanov said.

Jamal Khashoggi, a Saudi journalist and contributor to The Washington Post, disappeared after entering the Saudi Consulate General in Istanbul on October 2.

The Saudi state television said last weekend in reporting initial findings of an investigation into Khashoggi's disappearance that he had died in a fistfight at the consulate building. The king and crown prince of Saudi Arabia expressed condolences to Khashoggi's family.