The Middle East region is facing numerous challenges that pose a threat of further destabilizing its states. The region is also witnessing changes in the roles of international powers and their impact, in view of the return of some major countries, such as France, Russia and the United Kingdom, to play a bigger role in regional issues and conflicts.
Amidst this momentum, Saudi Crown Prince, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Muhammad Bin Nayef visited France on March 3rd and 4th, to affirm the continuation of the strategic partnership between the two countries. This visit also aimed at coordination, in view of the successive developments in the Middle East region, of which were the truce in Syria; the situation in Yemen; the Lebanese crisis, especially after halting the Saudi aids to the Lebanese army’, Iran’s role in the region and relations with the West following the nuclear agreement; as well as combating terrorism, amongst others.
The significance of the visit and Saudi-French cooperation
The Crown Prince’s visit to France was significant for both sides. This was evident in the presence of a senior level delegation, headed by Prince Muhammad bin Nayef, in addition to the accompanying delegation that included Foreign Minister Adel Al-Jubeir and Chief of General Intelligence Khalid Al Humaidan, reflecting the political-security nature of the visit.
The significance of the visit was further elaborated by the agenda of the Saudi Crown Prince during his stay in Paris. Prince Nayef commenced his meetings by meeting French Minister of Defense Jean-Yves Le Drian and proceeded to meet President François Hollande, Prime Minister Manuel Valls; in addition to meeting other French ministers and officials.
Prince Nayef’s visit to Paris is an affirmation of the strategic partnership between the two countries, which is evident in several features. Politically, for instance, there is a concurrence between the Saudi Kingdom and France on the majority of regional crises. Furthermore, the mutual visits between military and security officials from both countries reflect a convergence of views and enhanced security and military cooperation. Cooperation in this field is manifested by security training as well as the arming of ground, marine, and aerial Saudi troops.
As for the economic level, the volume of mutual trade between both countries has doubled to exceed €10 billion in 2014. Saudi Arabia is considered the primary trade partner to France within the GCC. Saudi Arabia’s direct investment in France represents 3% of the total Saudi foreign investment in the world and 30% of the GCC’s direct foreign investment in France. In addition, Paris is considered as the third-largest foreign investor in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The Saudi-French cultural cooperation is also evident in the fields of higher education and scientific research, especially after Saudi Arabia allocated a considerable part of its overall budget to education, which is a quarter of Saudi’s total public expenditure.
Emphasizing the French role in the region
Some interpretations allude that the Saudi Crown Prince’s visit to France came within the framework of both countries’ pursuit to 'arrange' the apparent chaos in the region, which some consider a result of the change in the orientations of some major powers, specifically the United States, whose pattern of involvement in the region’s conflict areas has changed.
The obvious retreat of Washington’s role in major regional issues led to the emergence of new alternatives, such as the Saudi-led Arab Coalition to restore legitimacy in Yemen after the Houthis’ coup, as well as the growing role of other major powers, like Russia and France in the Syrian Crisis.
It is worth noting since French President François Hollande’s assumption of power in 2012; France is keen on emphasizing its presence and role in the Middle East by supporting French-Arab relations through two significant axes: the French- Saudi and the French-Algerian. A third axis, the French-Egyptian, was added following President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi assumption of power in 2014.However, French-Saudi coordination remains the most significant in this context, especially with the influence of Riyadh and Paris on the important regional issues.
Outcomes of the visit … affirming common visions
Prince Muhammad Bin Nayef and the accompanying delegation’s visit to Paris affirmed the shared vision between the two countries on a number of significant issues in the Middle East:
1. The Syrian Crisis: Riyadh and Paris reiterated their support of the truce agreement between the Syrian parties and underlined that the groups specified by the Security Council were those that were only excluded from the truce. Both sides also reaffirmed their support to the High Negotiations Committee (HNC) of the Syrian opposition and stressed the need for sustainable improvement of the situation in order to allow resumption of negotiations between the Syrian parties. The two sides also underscored the importance of the delivery of free, unlimited and immediate humanitarian aid, in accordance with the international law, to assist the Syrians. Paris and Riyadh also agreed the Syria’s future has no place for Bashar al-Assad. France has previously, similar to Saudi Arabia, criticized the Russian raids on moderate opposition locations in Syria.
2. The Yemeni crisis: During his consultations with French officials, the Saudi Crown Prince sought to bind the Houthis and their allies to abide by international resolutions, foremost of which Security Council Resolution 2216, endorsed in April 2015. Resolution 2216 recommended the imposition of an arms embargo against parties fighting the legitimate authorities in Yemen and assisting said authorities to maintain the security and sovereignty of Yemen. In this context, Saudi Arabia, and France affirmed - during the visit - their support to the Arab Coalition in Yemen and Yemen’s legitimate authorities, in addition to the efforts of UN Secretary General Special Envoy for Yemen, Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed. France and Saudi Arabia also expressed their deep concern over the deterioration of the humanitarian situation.
3. The Lebanese crisis: Saudi and French officials affirmed the integrity, security and stability of Lebanon through the support of Lebanese government institutions, especially the army. Both sides also underlined the necessity of electing a president for Lebanon, as soon as possible, who can represent all parties in order for Lebanon to overcome the current crisis.
The Saudi delegation’s statements during the visit revealed Saudi Arabia’s adherence to the recent decision of suspending $3 billion in aid to the Lebanese army and designation of Hezbollah as a terrorist organization. Prior to his departure, Foreign Minister Adel Al-Jubeir announced the continuation of the deal his country has made with France to arm the Lebanese army and security forces, however, the final destination of the arms would be to the Saudi army and not the Lebanese army.
4. Containing Iran’s movement in the region: Fears arose in regards to European openness to Iran following the signing of the nuclear agreement and embarking on executing its terms, as well as the gradual lifting of the sanctions imposed on Tehran since mid-January 2016; and the subsequent visit of Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani’s to Paris at the end of January 2016, during which he signed a number of significant economic agreements.
5. Within the framework of Saudi endeavors to rally Western allies in its regional conflict with Iran, the most prominent goal of the Saudi Crown Prince’s visit to Paris was ensuring the latter's support of the Arab and Gulf stance towards Iran. The visit also aimed at receiving clarifications from the French authorities concerning the true intentions of Tehran towards the Gulf region, in view of the Iranian intervention in regional affairs and destabilizing regional security, particularly in Syria, Lebanon, Yemen and Iraq.
Security cooperation and war on terrorism
Several indicators point out that the visit of the Saudi Crown Prince to Paris will enhance bilateral strategic cooperation in the fields of security and defense. Furthermore, the visit will accelerate the implementation of the recently signed agreements to maximize the effectiveness of joint work on numerous regional issues.
Saudi Arabia and France have achieved significant progress in their close cooperation in the security and defense fields. Both countries are taking part in their war on terrorism within the framework of the International Coalition against ISIS in Syria and Iraq, as well as the continued security and intelligence cooperation between Riyadh and Paris.
During the visit, both sides expressed their readiness to enhance bilateral cooperation aiming at combating the causes of extremism, racism and sectarianism, as well as combating terrorism financing and reducing all forms of violence, including ethnic and religious violence. Moreover, President François Hollande awarded the Saudi Crown Prince the National Order of the Legion of Honor, the highest French decoration, for his notable efforts in the war against terrorism.
It is worth mentioning, France has sold $11.5 billion worth of weaponry to Saudi Arabia last year, and Saudi Arabia ranked first among the importers of French weaponry. Consequently, the Saudi market is of major importance to France, which induces the latter to refuse the European Parliament’s “non-binding” resolution, issued in late February, to ban weapons export to Saudi Arabia because of the Yemen war.
In addition to all of the above, the visit of Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Nayef asserts the Saudi-French concurrence on other issues; of which are supporting the Iraqi Government in the endeavors to adopt a national reconciliation program that includes all Iraqi factions; the necessity of resuming the Palestinian-Israeli peace process; and Riyadh’ support to the French initiative to hold an international conference on this issue. Paris highly relies on Riyadh’s assistance in the Palestinian-Israeli peace process, as Riyadh presented the Arab initiative that was adopted by Beirut Arab Summit in 2002, and for the Kingdom’s political weight and influence.
