US President Donald Trump has acknowledged that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman could have known of the murder of a dissident journalist, but said there would be no fallout anyway for Saudi-US relations.
Jamal Khashoggi was killed after he entered the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on 2 October.
"It could very well be that the Crown Prince had knowledge of this tragic event - maybe he did and maybe he didn't!" Mr Trump said in a statement.
"We may never know all of the facts surrounding the murder of Mr Jamal Khashoggi.
"In any case, our relationship is with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia."
"The United States intends to remain a steadfast partner of Saudi Arabia," he said.
This evening, Mr Trump said a CIA report into the killing found "nothing definitive".
"The CIA looked at it," he told journalists at the White House. "They have nothing definitive".
The murder of Mr Khashoggi has hugely embarrassed Washington.
For weeks, Mr Trump has resisted accepting mounting evidence of Saudi government involvement, and accusations the crown prince ordered the killing.
However, with The New York Times reporting that the CIA has definitively concluded that Prince Mohammed was involved, the focus turned to whether Mr Trump would punish his Saudi partner or find a way to let it slide.
In his statement, released by the White House press office, he took the latter option, saying that the US-Saudi relationship was more important than the possible involvement in the crime of Prince Mohammed.
He noted that Saudi King Salman and the crown prince "vigorously deny any knowledge of the planning or execution of the murder of Mr Khashoggi".
Also, Saudi Arabia, he said, provides crucial help in the US struggle to contain Iranian ambitions, as well as having committed to $450 billion in US weapons contracts and other investments.
In addition, the Saudis have helped in keeping oil prices low, Mr Trump said.
"The United States intends to remain a steadfast partner of Saudi Arabia to ensure the interests of our country, Israel and all other partners in the region," he added.
He acknowledged a strong push in Congress for the United States to sanction Prince Mohammed and take other action against the Saudi leadership.
"I will consider whatever ideas are presented to me, but only if they are consistent with the absolute security and safety of America," he said.
The statement coincided with a meeting between US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Turkish Foreign Minister Melvut Cavusoglu at the State Department in Washington.
It was anticipated that much of their conversation would focus on the US assessment of the murder of Mr Khashoggi.
