Turkey foreign minister: Donald Trump is turning a blind eye to Khashoggi killing

Turkey's foreign minister has accused US president Donald Trump of "turning a blind eye" to the death of Jamal Khashoggi after he admitted it was possible that Saudi Arabia rulers had prior knowledge of the killing but said it wouldn't effect relations. 

Trump claimed it was important to maintain a "steadfast" relationship with the kingdom and ensured Washington would continue its strong bond with Saudi Arabia despite the journalist's killing. 

But the Turkish minister, Mevlut Cavusoglu, has launched a scathing attack on Trump and accused the US leader of only caring about money.

“Trump seems to be turning a blind eye but not everything is about money. This is a murder. Our eyes should be blind to money," Cavusoglu told Turkish broadcaster CNN Turk. 

Cavusoglu also claimed that the US had not shared any intelligence with Turkey after Turkish newspaper Hurriyet reported that the CIA had a recording of the Saudi crown prince, Mohammed Bin Salman, telling his brother to "silence" Khashoggi. 

“I don’t know if they have a recording or not,” Cavusoglu said. “They haven’t shared anything [about it] with us."

Last week it was reported that the CIA believe the crown prince is directly responsible for Khashoggi’s murder, while the US imposed sanctions on 17 Saudi officials over their alleged roles in the journalist’s death.

Khashoggi, a US resident, disappeared after entering the Saudi consulate on 2 October, with subsequent reports suggesting he was strangled the moment he entered the building before his body was dismembered and removed.