Ben Hubbard has a decent round-up, "Khashoggi Killing Overshadows Saudis’ Grand Economic Ambitions," vis-à-vis crown prince Mohammed bin Salman's Future Investment Initiative, a.k.a., "Davos in the Desert."
The Future Investment Initiative is an annual conference to promote "Saudi Vision 2030," the crown prince's scheme to neoliberalize the kingdom. The foundation of this neoliberal vision is taking Saudi Aramco public, an effort that has been delayed numerous times even prior to Khashoggi's assassination.
Pakistan's Imran Khan and Jordan's King Abdullah left the conference with billions in Saudi aid. And while overall attendance was down this year because of the Khashoggi media firestorm, Hubbard concludes his story on a note of "And This Too Shall Pass":
“Practically, is this going to delay M.B.S.’s ambitions? Yes. Is it going to wreck them? No,” said Denis Florin, a partner at Lavoisier Conseil, a consulting firm specializing in energy. “I do not see a major revolution in the business attitude toward the middle and long-term prospects of Saudi Arabia.”The only news regarding Khashoggi is Erdogan's address in Ankara to AKP officials from the provinces. Reuters is reporting that Erdogan said the Saudis need to identify those responsible for Khashoggi's murder; that Turkey has not revealed all that it possesses. Erdogan's message to al-Saud is basically "Shit or get off the pot."
Negotiations are no doubt proceeding round the clock. Who knows what's on the table? I imagine the future status of Rojava is a topic of discussion. Trump is having the Saudis pick up the Kurdish tab for Syria.
It makes sense that Erdogan is using the Khashoggi affair to prune Rojava. When Erdogan makes his bold moves it's usually to go after internal enemies, i.e., Gülenists or the PKK.
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