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President Macron receives UAE President at Élysée Palace
French President Emmanuel Macron has received United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan at the Élysée Palace in Paris, the Alarabiya English reported.
The trip is Sheikh Mohamed’s first overseas visit since taking post after the death of his brother and the country’s former President Sheikh Khalifa on May 13.
One of Macron’s advisors told AFP that a focus of the trip is likely to involve the UAE guaranteeing energy supplies to France.
Sheikh Mohamed, in his first televised public address on Wednesday, said the UAE would continue to support global energy security, amid rising fuel prices in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
UAE exports to France in 2019 reached 1.5 billion euros, much of it petroleum products.
French President #EmmanuelMacron receives United Arab Emirates President #SheikhMohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan at the Elysee Palace in Paris.https://t.co/OU4ynGP93R pic.twitter.com/CdBfxeD3d3
— Al Arabiya English (@AlArabiya_Eng) July 18, 2022
The Elysee source also told AFP that France is seeking “to diversify its sources of supply in the context of the conflict in Ukraine.”
MoUs and contracts are also reportedly expected to be signed in the transport and waste treatment sectors during the three-day visit.
UAE President arrives in France to strengthen ties and focus on energy
Relations between the two countries have grown considerably in recent years. The UAE is home to the only foreign branch of the Louvre museum, and in December it signed a record 14-billion-euro contract for 80 Rafale warplanes.
The UAE is home to the largest French and Francophone expatriate community in the Gulf region, the report noted.
Source: alarabiyaenglish
