French president in surprise Saudi visit
Macron held hastily scheduled talks in Riyadh with Prince Mohammad amid tension over Iran
French President Emmanuel Macron held hastily scheduled talks in Riyadh on Thursday with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman amid rising tensions between Saudi Arabia and Iran, notably over Lebanon and Yemen.
The first face-to-face talks between the two men focused on regional questions, in particular Yemen and Lebanon, and “ensuring the preservation of stability in the region”, the French presidency said in a statement after the meeting.
“They discussed the situation in Lebanon following the resignation of Prime Minister Hariri,” the French presidency said. “President Macron reiterated the importance France attaches to Lebanon’s stability, security, sovereignty and integrity.” The statement made no mention of whether Macron had spoken with or seen Hariri while in Riyadh.
In recent years, France has been able to nurture new links with Gulf Arab states due to its tough stance on Iran in nuclear negotiations, and the broad similarity of their policies on conflicts across the Middle East.
However, the 32-year-old Prince Mohammad has emphasised closer ties with US President Donald Trump at a time when Macron has in turn sought to improve relations with Iran.
Macron has said he will travel to Iran in 2018, potentially becoming the first French president to travel there since 1971.
Establishing dialogue
His visit, he reasoned, is aimed at establishing dioalogue with all the actors in the region, but warned about decisions that could destabilise the region further.
“We need to have a truthful dialogue,” he said. “It’s not about showing any naivety towards Iran, it is about standing beside our allies, in particular the UAE, but it is also about not having a diehard policy that could create imbalances or even conflicts in the region.”