Macron to meet Saudi crown prince MBS in Paris amid energy crisis
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Saudi Crown MBS will meet with French President Emmanuel Macron at the Elysée palace, the latter's office said, but no further details on the goal of the visit were provided.
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Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman will meet President Macron in Paris | (Yoan Valat/AFP via Getty Images)
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman will meet Thursday French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris for a working dinner at the Elysée palace, according to Macron's office, which did not provide any further details on the purpose of the visit.
The official trip comes as Europe in general and France, in particular, are trying to replace Russian energy supplies.
Read more: France in talks with UAE on replacement of Russian oil supplies
Earlier this month, Macron met with UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and declared a diesel supply agreement. At a G7 meeting in June, France urged oil-producing nations to boost their output in an "exceptional manner", to help bring down soaring crude prices fuelled by the war in Ukraine.
"We need producing countries to produce in an exceptional measure," said the French presidency on the sidelines of the G7 summit in the Bavarian Alps.
The presidency also called for a "diversification of supplies", including from Iran and Venezuela.
The crown prince's visit is his first to Europe since the 2018 killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, which was ordered by Mohammed bin Salman himself.
Earlier this week, the crown prince visited Greece, and the two countries discussed possible collaboration in the energy sector.
It is worth noting that the trip comes less than two weeks after US President Biden met with the crown prince in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, and greeted him with a fist bump.
