For the symbol, the President went there himself. On Monday morning, shortly after 7:00, Francois Hollande arrived in Doha to attend the official signing of the sales contract of 24 French Rafale in Qatar.
The fruit of more than two years of work and ten discrete confidential diplomatic trips whose head of state will not fail to recall effectiveness before joining Riyadh (Saudi Arabia) Tuesday, where he will be guest of honor a summit of the Cooperation Council of Arab Gulf States (GCC). A first for a Western head of state.
A contract of 6.3 billion euros
Accompanied by ministers Foreign Affairs and Defense, Laurent Fabius and Jean-Yves Le Drian, Hollande must witness the signing of two contracts. The first concluded by the State of Qatar with industry Dassault Aviation, maker of the Rafale and the European MBDA missile manufacturer who provides weapons, so will formalize the sale of six Rafale two-seater and 18 single-seater, to € 6.3 billion.
VIDEO. Burst: Netherlands welcomes a “third commercial success”
And the second, confidential, will be an intergovernmental agreement on the training of drivers 36 and a hundred mechanics. It is also about the investigation of intelligence officers because the Rafale, “multirole” device is also a reconnaissance aircraft equipped with powerful means of observation.
A “roadmap” Saudi French
Just before the signing of these contracts, Francois Hollande is scheduled to meet privately with the emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani. Both must particularly mention the multiple crises in the region, starting with the war in Yemen. The head of state intends to impose France as interlocutor between the leaders of the Arab world and Europe. In the wake of his short stay in Qatar, French President will fly from the afternoon to Saudi Arabia. He is scheduled to meet in the evening with the king Salman.
Francois Hollande will be the first Western head of state in Riyadh received from the vast reshuffle announced Wednesday at the head of the kingdom (see box), the world’s crude exporter. It will also be the guest of honor at a summit of the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (GCC), which includes Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the UAE, Oman, Kuwait and Qatar. Another first for a Western leader.
Francois Hollande is the first head of state received by the new government of Saudi Arabia. The king Salman has made one of his nephews, Mohammed bin Nayef, the new crown prince, and one of his son, Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the future crown prince, second in line of succession, while the current Saudi ambassador in Washington, Adel al-Jubeir, takes responsibility for the diplomacy of his country.
Francois Hollande burns a little politeness to his US counterpart, Barack Obama. It must receive the GCC leaders in mid-May at the White House and Camp David to try to reassure them on the framework agreement concluded in early April with Iran about its nuclear program, suspected by the West to hide military purposes.
According to the Elysee, a Franco-Saudi joint declaration on a ‘roadmap’ political, economic, strategic and military will be signed during this visit. Before that, the schedule of Francois Hollande will be charged. On Tuesday morning, he will hold talks with former Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri. Then at the summit of the GCC, it is planned to discuss the nuclear program of Iran, big rival Shiite Sunni monarchies of the Gulf, the fight against the group Islamic State in Iraq, Syria and Yemen.
VIDEO. Yemen: deadly fighting in Aden
Given the stakes, the visit of Francois Hollande will be scanned with millimeter, particularly by NGOs working in very rough areas which will be question. On Monday, the humanitarian organization Action against Hunger (ACF) has even called President Francois Hollande to do anything to get a cessation of hostilities in Yemen and lifting the blockade that prevents the distribution of aid to civilians.
& gt; Come discuss and ask questions on our forums!
No comments:
Post a Comment