The visit of the Saudi Crown Prince to Paris on Thursday is part of the very specific context of the war in Ukraine and the rise in energy prices. And it is a way for Emmanuel Macron to put himself back, according to a specialist in the Middle East.
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Russia’s “special operation” in Ukraine has definitely changed many things. four years later the assassination of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, the crown prince of Saudi Arabia, a time ostracized from the international community, is therefore expected on Thursday July 28 for a working dinner with Emmanuel Macron.
>> Mohamed Ben Salmane visiting France: the return to favor of the Saudi crown prince on the international scene, in three stages
Arousing the anger of human rights defenders, this meeting is a further sign of the “rehabilitation” of the Saudi crown prince, less than two weeks after the visit of US President Joe Biden to Saudi Arabia – and this famous “check” of the hand, which definitively consecrated the return of “MBS” on the international scene.
Thanks to the war in Ukraine and the surge in oil prices, MBS is once again popular. After having ostracized him, Westerners are also seeking to restore close relations with the young crown prince.
.France has a “triple interest“explained by Agnès Levallois, senior researcher at the Foundation for Strategic Research. First of all, “France considers that it must play a role in this Middle East, which is in a complicated period all the same”, details the specialist. And the question of oil is a key point: “There is obviously a particular component related to energy issues, because Saudi Arabia has the means to bring down oil prices. And there is another particular file between France and Saudi Arabia, which concerns Lebanon. The economic and financial crisis in Lebanon is still just as dramatic. One can imagine that this file will also be mentioned by France. It’s one of his diplomatic priorities.”says Agnès Levallois.
Will Emmanuel Macron succeed in convincing Mohammed bin Salman to open the floodgates to lower the price of black gold? Joe Biden, who had called MBS a pariah, broke his teeth there ten days ago. The less clear-cut position of the French president, who was the first Western leader to go to Jeddah, just before the outbreak of the Ukrainian conflict, could be an asset.