It was a busy weekend for Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman ahead of a planned regional trip to neighboring Gulf countries.
The crown prince hosted France’s President Emmanuel Macron in Jeddah for diplomatic and trade talks at the Al-Salam palace in Jeddah on Saturday. Macron landed in Jeddah after visits to the United Arab Emirates and Qatar as part of a short Gulf tour.
Macron’s visit to Saudi Arabia is the first by a head of state from a Western power since the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
The crown prince hosted a working lunch for Macron, which was also attended by Bahrain’s Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad and other officials.
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and French President Emmanuel Macron.
According to Arab News, the two countries issued a joint statement, welcoming “the strength of economic relations between the two countries and agreed on the importance of strengthening economic partnership, enhancing private sector participation, exchanging expertise, developing human capabilities, and utilizing opportunities offered by the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 and France’s 2030 economic plan in various sectors of joint interest.”
The visit by Macron resulted in tangible diplomatic progress on one issue of importance to both the Kingdom and France: Lebanon. French President Emmanuel Macron said Saudi Arabia’s crown prince had agreed to re-engage with Lebanon after Riyadh cut ties earlier this year. According to a report in the Wall Street Journal, citing regional sources, Mr. Macron and Prince Mohammed bin Salman “called Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati to convey that their countries would be working together to help Lebanon. Mr. Mikati committed to reject anything that harms Gulf countries’ security and stability, according to the state-run Saudi Press Agency, while Mr. Macron and Prince Mohammed agreed to establish a joint mechanism for humanitarian assistance to Lebanon to ensure transparency.”
A slate of Saudi-French business deals materialized as a result of the visit.
Lewis Hamilton won wild Saudi Arabian Grand Prix for Mercedes on Sunday.
One day after the visit, Saudi Arabia hosted its first ever Formula 1 race in Jeddah, a global event with high stakes for the sport – and a proud moment for Saudis who saw their historic city on the Red Sea coast welcome the biggest names in racing.
The Crown Prince personally attended the event, a moment shared widely on social media by Saudis. Crown Prince Mohammed was shown in photos walking with Formula One Group chief executive Stefano Domenicali.
Crown Prince Mohammed now begins a tour of neighboring Gulf states ahead of an annual Gulf summit this month, visiting Oman, United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Qatar and Kuwait.
