Energy deals top agenda as UAE president meets Macron in Paris

The UAE leader is on his first overseas state visit since taking over from his half-brother in May and the first by a UAE leader since 1991.

Macron has forged a good relationship with Mohamed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan – also known by his initials, MBZ – with investments flowing between both countries, most recently with France sealing its largest-ever overseas sale of the Rafale warplane.

"This is a strong and symbolic gesture," the French presidency official said in a statement describing the visit.

The two countries would also agree on a global, strategic energy partnership to identify common projects in sectors such as hydrogen, renewable and nuclear energy in their respective countries and elsewhere, according to a French official.

A new Franco-Emirati business council would also be launched and headed up by TotalEnergies chief Patrick Pouyanne, he added.

Speaking to reporters ahead of the visit, MBZ's diplomatic adviser, Anwar Gargash, said Abu Dhabi wanted to deepen its economic and cultural ties with Paris focusing on technology and future energies, but that oil remained vital given the current geo-strategical outlook.

"Our oil has traditionally been sold to the Far East. I think right now there is more interest in our oil in Europe ... so other than that our interest with France is in sustainable and future energy," he said.

The UAE president's visit comes days after Joe Biden's first Middle East tour as president, including a visit to Saudi Arabia at a time when Western powers remain desperate for both Riyadh and the UAE to increase oil output to tame elevated energy prices stemming from Russia's invasion of Ukraine. 

'Symbolic dimension'

Relations between France and the UAE 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 visit to France "has of course a very symbolic dimension and illustrates ... Macron and MBZ's good personal relations", said Anne Gadel, a member of the North Africa Middle East Observatory at the Fondation Jean Jaures in Paris.

"This trip will be marked by energy issues in a context where European countries are worried about growing inflation driven by high energy prices," she added. 

Both European powers and the US have sought to press Gulf countries into upping oil output.

In opting for France – rather than the US – as his first foreign destination as president, the UAE's Sheikh Mohamed could be sending "a signal ... to the US ... meaning: we are not in a hurry to respond to the US' demands at all costs", Gadel said.

(FRANCE 24 with AFP and REUTERS)