MARIA: WELCOME BACK TODAY MARKS
ONE YEAR TO THE DAY SINCE THE
MEMBER OF THE SAUDI ROYAL FAMILY
AND A GLOBAL INVESTOR WAS
IMPRISONED BY THE CROWN PRINCE
OF SAUDI ARABIA, THIS AS THE
KINGDOM NOW FACES RENEWED
SCRUTINY OVER THE MURDER OF
WASHINGTON POST COLUMNIST JAMAL
KHASHOGGI.
JOINING ME IN THIS EXCLUSIVE IS
THE PRINCE HIMSELF THE FOUNDER
AND CHAIRMAN OF THE KINGDOM
HOLDING COMPANY.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR JOINING
US THIS MORNING IT IS GOOD TO
SEE YOU AND LET ME GET RIGHT
INTO IT.
IT HAS BEEN A YEAR SINCE YOU
WERE IMPRISONED.
IT WAS ABOUT A YEAR AGO THAT I
SAT DOWN WITH THE CROWN PRINCE
OF SAUDI ARABIA, MOHAMMED BIN SA
LAMON, AND HE TOLD ME ON STAGE
AND TOLD THE WORD HE WANTS TO
MODERNIZE SAUDI ARABIA, HE WANTS
TO LIVE LIKE NORMAL PEOPLE,
ALLOW WOMEN TO DRIVE, ALLOW
MOVIE THEATRES SO PEOPLE CAN GO
OUT AND THEN YOU'RE IN PRISON
TWO WEEKS LATER WITH OTHER
MINISTERS, WE UNDERSTAND YOU
WERE TORTURED, AND JUST A MONTH
AGO, A BRUTAL MURDER OF JAMAL
KHASHOGGI WHERE HIS BODY WAS
DISMEMBERED.
IS MOHAMMED BIN SALMON FOR REAL
OR IS HE LYING TO US ABOUT THIS
MODERNIZATION PLAN?
>> YEAH, IT'S A PLEASURE NOT
ONLY TO BE WITH YOU AGAIN, MARIA
NOW, YESTERDAY IS THE
ANNIVERSARY OF MY DETENTION ONE
YEAR AGO, BUT I THINK SINCE THIS
IS BEHIND US AND I BELIEVE THAT
INCIDENT WAS IMPORTANT FOR SAUDI
ARABIA, BECAUSE MANY OF THOSE
DETAINEES DESERVE TO BE THERE,
BECAUSE SAUDI ARABIA DID HAVE A
LOT OF CORRUPTION AND THANK GOD
THAT AFTER THIS INCIDENT, MANY
OF THOSE THAT WERE DETAINED HAD
THE PROCESS AND NOW AS FOR ME, I
DID SAY THAT THERE WAS A
MISUNDERSTANDING, IN THE REUTERS
INTERVIEW AND THE BLOOMBERG
INTERVIEW I SAID THERE WAS AN
MISUNDERSTANDING AND I'M OUT NOW
, AND I SAID WHAT HAPPENED
WAS FORGIVEN AND FORGOTTEN SO
THAT'S BEHIND US AND WE ARE ON
EXCELLENT TERMS WITH THE KING OF
SAUDI ARABIA.
NOW, AS YES, I ASSURE IT IS FOR
REAL AND ALL THAT HE IS DOING IS
CHANGING SAUDI ARABIA IN A VERY
REVOLUTIONARY MANNER, SOCIALLY,
ECONOMICALLY, FINANCIALLY, AND
EVEN SAUDI ARABIA RIGHT NOW IS
HUGE DEVELOPMENT AND CHANGES AND
AS YOU KNOW, HAPPILY SO, I DO
NOT REPRESENT THE GOVERNMENT SO
I'LL BE SPEAKING TO YOU FREELY
AND OPENLY AND INDEPENDENTLY AS
USUAL.
AS FOR THE JAMAL KHASHOGGI
INCIDENT, HE WAS NOT ONLY MY
FRIEND.
HE WAS WORKING WITH ME, AND I'D
LIKE TO GIVE MY CONDOLENCES
AGAIN TO HIS FAMILY, TO HIS WIFE
, EX-WIFE, AND TO HIS
CHILDREN, AND HIS FAMILY,
BECAUSE JAMAL WAS A REFORMER,
AND WHAT TOOK PLACE IN THAT
SAUDI CONSOLATE WAS CLEARLY
HORRIFIC, UNSPEAKABLE, AND
TRAGIC, AND I BELIEVE THAT SAUDI
ARABIA IS GOING TO GET TO THE
BOTTOM OF IT, BUT PLEASE YOU
HAVE TO GIVE IT SOME TIME UNTIL
THE INVESTIGATION IS DONALD MADE
PUBLIC BY GOVERNMENT OF SAUDI
ARABIA.
MARIA: BUT I WANT TO GO BACK TO
YOUR DETENTION FOR A MOMENT BUT
SINCE WE'RE ON JAMAL KHASHOGGI,
YOU SAID MOHAMMED BIN SALMAN IS
FOR REAL, HE DOES WANT TO DO THE
RIGHT THING AND MODERNIZE SAUDI
ARABIA AND WE KNOW FROM THE
GROUP THAT BRUTALLY MURDERED
JAMAL KHASHOGGI, SEVERAL OF THEM
WERE AIDS TO MOHAMMED BIN SALMAN
ONE OF THEM WE'VE SEEN WITH HIM
MANY TYPES IN OTHER PICTURES AND
WE ALSO KNOW THAT AFTER THE
MURDER, THE SAUDIS SENT A CLEAN
UP CREW TO CLEAN THE
EMBASSY TO WIPE AWAY ANY
EVIDENCE OF IT, AND WE ALSO KNOW
THAT THE TURKISH GOVERNMENT SAYS
THEY HAVE IT ALL ON TAPE, AND
ALL ON HOT MICROPHONES, THE WAY
HE WAS BRUTALLY MURDERED SO YOU
SAY MOHAMMED BIN SALMAN IS FOR
REAL BUT THE EVIDENCE DOESN'T
POINT THAT WAY, SIR.
>> OKAY, IN YOUR QUESTION
YOU'RE IMPLYING THAT ORDERS WERE
GIVEN BY THE PRINCE DIRECTLY AND
THAT'S A FALSE STATEMENT.
NOW PUBLICLY, A MURDER DID
HAPPEN IN A SAUDI CONSOLATE IN
TURKEY, SO THAT'S BEEN
RECOGNIZED ALREADY.
NOW, SAUDI ARABIA DID
ACKNOWLEDGE ALSO THAT THEY HAD A
STANDING ORDER, BY THE WAY, THAT
WHENEVER THERE IS A POSITION TO
SAUDI ARABIA BY ANY HUMAN BEING
OUTSIDE SAUDI ARABIA, THE
STANDING ORDERS WHICH I SAID I
REPEAT, IT WAS TO ENGAGE WITH
THEM, TALK TO THEM, AND TRY TO
CONVINCE THEM TO COME TO SAUDI
ARABIA SO I THINK SOME PEOPLE'S
INTELLIGENCE DID FOLLOW THESE
ORDERS AND SENT A GROUP OF
PEOPLE TO TURKEY TO ENGAGE WITH
JAMAL KHASHOGGI AND CLEARLY SOME
WENT THERE, WHEREBY HE WAS
MURDERED, SO PLEASE ANTICIPATE
WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN IN THE
INVESTIGATION THAT SAUDI ARABIA
IS SAYING RIGHT NOW.
PLEASE, I REMIND YOU, FOR THE
INCIDENT WHEREBY THOUSANDS OF
IRAQIS WERE TORTURED, RAPED,
MOLESTED, AND WERE PICTURED AND
VIDEOTAPED ALSO, AND AT THAT
TIME, MANY OF THE WESTERN MEDIA
WENT BACK TO THE PRESIDENT THEN,
AND THE DEFENSE SECRETARY THEN,
AND TRIED TO CLEARLY AFTER A FEW
MONTHS OF THE INVESTIGATION THEY
WERE SKILL RATED SO PLEASE LET'S
GET SOME TIME FOR THE
INVESTIGATION TO FINISH AND I
ASK SAUDI ARABIA NOW PUBLICLY
THROUGH A PROGRAM, THE
INVESTIGATION MADE PUBLIC AS
SOON AS POSSIBLE TO WHEREBY I
BELIEVE THAT THE
MARIA: I'M BACK WITH THE PRINCE
A MOMENT AGO WE DISCUSSED YOUR
DETENTION ONE YEAR AGO TODAY,
WERE YOU TORTURED AND DID YOU
HAVE TO GIVE UP YOUR FORTUNE TO
THE SAUDI GOVERNMENT?
>> YEAH, MARIA, YOU KNOW,
THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT I TELL YOU
IN THE MEDIA, WHEN IT GOES
BEYOND ITS LIMITS AND COMMITS
ALL THESE LIES AND RUMORS.
I WAS WATCHING ALL THE PROGRAMS
ON TV WHILE I WAS IN THE
SO-CALLED DETENTION.
MARIA: RIGHT.
>> WHEN I HEARD THAT A TEAM IN
THE UNITED STATES CAME TO
TORTURE ME AND MY FEET WERE UP
AND MY HEAD WAS DOWN AND I WENT
TO HIGH SECURITY PRISON, ALL OF
THESE LIES NOT TRUE, FALSE
STATEMENT COMPLETELY AND I HEARD
ALSO THE RUMORS THAT I WAS
INTACT JUST LOOK AT THE SAUDI
STOCK MARKET AND COMPLETE --
ALMOST 98%.
MARIA: ARE YOU STILL SAYING YOU
OWN KINGDOM HOLDINGS AND ALL
YOUR HIGH PROFILE STAKES LIKE AN
OWNERSHIP STAKE IN CITIGROUP, IN
TWITTER, IN NEWS CORP., OF
COURSE NEWS CORP. SHARES THE
SAME COMMON OWNERSHIP AS COMPAR
ED TO THIS COMPANY, 21ST
CENTURY FOX.
>> PLEASE, PLEASE, JUST LOOK AT
THE DOW, THE STOCK MARKET.
IT JUST WAS 95%, JUST LOOK AT IT
YOU DON'T HAVE TO ASK ME, IT'S
ALL PUBLIC INFORMATION.
MARIA: LET ME MOVE ON TO THE WAY
FORWARDING SIR, BECAUSE NOW
THERE ARE QUESTIONS ABOUT THE
U.S. AND SAUDI PARTNERSHIP, NEW
SANCTIONS GO INTO EFFECT AGAINST
IRAN TOMORROW.
DO YOU BELIEVE THOSE SANCTIONS
WILL BE EFFECTIVE AND HOW SHOULD
THE U.S. AND THE SAUDI ARABIA
GOVERNMENT MOVE FORWARD WITH OR
WITHOUT MBS?
>> YEAH, PLEASE, SAUDI ARABIA
IS THE VEHICLE OF STABILITY IN
THIS REGION.
LOOK AT ALL OUR VICINITY, LOOK
AT YEMEN, IRAQ, SYRIA, LOOK AT
IRAN.
THEY'RE ALL TURBULENT.
SAUDI ARABIA IS THE VEHICLE OF
STABILITY IN THIS REGION, SO OUR
ALLIANCE SINCE 1945 WHEN IT'S