Crisis risks regional stability

• Mattis says Russia cannot replace US in Mideast

• Saudi FM says it is beacon of "light" against Iran

• Macron, Merkel back 'coordinated European position' on Khashoggi sanctions

US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis yesterday said that the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi undermined Middle Eastern stability as Riyadh dismissed Ankara's calls to extradite 18 Saudis wanted for the murder.

Washington Post columnist Khashoggi's murder has escalated into a crisis for the world's top oil exporter. Saudi Arabia's allies have reacted with outrage towards a country that is the lynchpin of a US-backed regional bloc against growing Iranian influence in the Middle East.

But Mattis also said US respect for the Saudi people was undiminished, while Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir said those behind the killing would be prosecuted in the kingdom and that the investigation would take time.

"With our collective interests in peace and unwavering respect for human rights in mind, the murder of Jamal Khashoggi in a diplomatic facility must concern us all greatly," Mattis told a security conference in Bahrain.

"Failure of any one nation to adhere to international norms and the rule of law undermines regional stability at a time when it is needed most," Mattis said. He did not mention de facto Saudi ruler Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman by name at any point.

Saudi Arabia's public prosecutor said Khashoggi's killing was premeditated, contradicting a previous official statement that it happened accidentally during a tussle in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul.

Mattis said the presence in the Middle East of Russia - a major ally of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad - could not be a replacement for the United States, whose "long-standing, enduring, and transparent" commitment to the region he reiterated.

Saudi Foreign Minister Jubeir, speaking at the same conference, said Riyadh's relations with Washington were "ironclad" amid what he called "hysteria in the media" over Khashoggi's killing.

"We are now dealing with two visions in the Middle East. One is a (Saudi) vision of light ... One is a (Iranian) vision of darkness which seeks to spread sectarianism throughout the region," Jubeir warned the conference .

"History tells us that light always wins out against the dark ... The question is how do we defeat them."

Meanwhile, France and Germany's leaders yesterday said they want a "coordinated" European position for sanctions on arms sales to Saudi Arabia after the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, according to the French presidency.

French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Chancellor Angela Merkel "want to coordinate at a European level on sanctions", the Elysee palace said after the two met on the sidelines of a Syria summit in Istanbul.