Mohammed bin Salman ends his official visit to France on Tuesday April 10 with a dinner with President Emmanuel Macron, after having met Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri the day before during a meeting that would have been very unlikely a few more weeks ago. A photo tweeted overnight from Monday to Tuesday by Saad Hariri shows him with the Saudi prince, nicknamed "MBS", and the King of Morocco Mohammed VI. Seated side by side in an unidentified place, they smile at the camera in casual clothes, jackets and open-necked shirts.
This meeting between MBS and Saad Hariri, not on the agenda but confirmed by Saad Hariri's press office at Agence France-Presse, comes just a few months after the crisis triggered in November 2017 when Saad Hariri had announced his resignation from Riyadh, a crisis in which France was largely involved. Saudi Arabia was then accused of having forced its protege Saad Hariri to resign in an attempt to stem the influence of Shiite Iran in Lebanon and to retain him against his will. France had intervened to find a way out. Saad Hariri returned to his country three weeks later and then announced that he was reconsidering his decision. Legislative elections are scheduled for May 6 in Lebanon.
A visit under the sign of diplomacy
The Parisian reunion between Mohammed bin Salman and Saad Hariri underlines the extent to which the crown prince's three-day visit to Paris was placed under the sign of diplomacy, and also of culture, but rather little of the economy . In the explosive context of the Middle East, where Riyadh is a major player, the young 32-year-old prince did not come to Paris to do business and sign checks. So much so that the Élysée announced on Monday that Emmanuel Macron would go to Saudi Arabia "at the end of the year" to sign contracts. A meeting was still organized by the Saudi delegation on Tuesday morning with several French bosses, which should give rise to some commercial announcements. But the prince spent nearly three weeks in the United States, a historic ally of Riyadh, where he had plenty of time to make agreements and contracts.
According to the Élysée, Emmanuel Macron had a “strategic discussion with MBS” on Sunday during their one-on-one dinner at the Louvre, “namely to build an alliance with the Saudis”. The two leaders will be able to outline the outlines on Tuesday evening in front of the press at the Élysée before having dinner for a second time together. The next Saudi monarch, who because of his young age can hope to reign for several decades, has been able to widely discuss since Sunday the major strategic issues at stake in the Middle East, as well as his differences with the French positions on several of them. . A source close to the Saudi government has suggested that the prince's constant changes in schedule (his schedule is very erratic) are due to him spending time on "difficult negotiations".
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The Middle East under tension
There is no shortage of hot issues in a Middle East under tension, in particular because of the fierce rivalry between Riyadh and Tehran for the regional influence: Iranian nuclear agreement in the hot seat, war in Yemen where the two countries clash indirectly, political pressure in Lebanon, war in Syria... On the Iranian nuclear issue in particular, MBS is backed by the position of Washington, which wants to denounce the international Iranian nuclear agreement of 2015 and threatens to withdraw from it by May 12. France and the Europeans hope to save the agreement and Emmanuel Macron should plead in this direction.
Paris should also try to persuade Riyadh to participate in its efforts in the Sahel. Saudi Arabia is a contributor to the G5 Sahel, the development and security structure of the region essential for Paris, in particular to counter the jihadist threat. And the French government might want to make Saudi aid permanent. Tuesday should also be officially signed the partnership between Paris and Riyadh for the development of the ancient city of Al-Ula into a responsible tourist complex where France is a stakeholder. The cultural component will have been one of the most extensive of this visit, with the announcement of an agreement for the development of an opera in Saudi Arabia or the kingdom's participation in the next Cannes film festival. At the end of these three days spent in France, MBS will fly away for a day in Madrid, before returning to his country, in particular to prepare for the next Arab League summit on April 15 in Riyadh.
