Bali, Indonesia (CNN) Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said Friday that he still plans to attend an upcoming investment conference in Saudi Arabia, doubling down on the administration's hesitant response to the disappearance of a dissident Saudi journalist in Turkey as top business leaders back away from the kingdom.

"I am planning on going at this point. If more information comes out and changes, we could look at that, but I am planning on going," Mnuchin told CNBC's "Squawk Box" in an interview on the sidelines of the International Monetary Fund's annual meeting of foreign finance chiefs and central bankers here.

Mnuchin's comments came as top executives and political leaders, as well as corporate sponsors, have dropped out of the conference, sometimes referred to as "Davos in the Desert," and scheduled to be hosted by the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in in Riyadh later this month. CNN announced Friday that it would join the New York Times and others in canceling its partnership of the event.

The Trump administration, which has pursued a close relationship with the Saudis, is facing increasing pressure by Congress to cut military support, immediately halt arms sales and impose sanctions against the Saudi government over Jamal Khashoggi, a columnist for The Washington Post who has been missing for more than a week after going to the Saudi consulate general in Istanbul.

Turkish officials believe he was killed at the consulate, an allegation denied by Saudi Arabia.

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