Many high-profile politicians and business leaders have pulled out of Saudi Arabia’s Future Investment Initiative conference amid allegations the country was behind Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi’s killing.

One company still sending its people to the event is BAE Systems, the UK’s £18bn defence and aerospace company that receives a sixth of its revenues from Saudi Arabia and has 6,000 staff based there.

Following the death of the journalist there have been demands for countries to boycott Saudi Arabia. Germany has said it will stop selling arms to the country for the moment, but despite statements from a number of other states’ leaders, there is unlikely to be much change. We need Saudi oil and we want to keep selling them products.

We enclose last month’s Financial Director interview with BAE Systems’ CFO Peter Lynas that demonstrates this complex situation- where there was already mounting pressure to stop sales to Saudi because of its use of British-built weaponry in Yemen.