The visit of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to Paris, has drawn significant attention from the French media. Journalists eagerly awaited his arrival at the Élysée Palace on Friday afternoon, indicating the importance of his presence in France across different media platforms.
For the first time, the Crown Prince will stay in Paris for a relatively long period due to the convergence of three major events.
The first event was his meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron at the Élysée Palace, which took place in two stages: the first being a closed-door session and the second involving delegations from both France and Saudi Arabia.
The second event is the general assembly of the Bureau International des Expositions, dedicated to listening to the presentations of the four competing countries vying to host the Expo 2030: Saudi Arabia, Italy, South Korea, and Ukraine.
The French independent newspaper “Le Monde” considered that Riyadh hosting the international expo would serve as a splendid platform to showcase the transformations taking place in Saudi Arabia to the world at large.
The newspaper further noted that as part of the Kingdom’s “Vision 2030,” the Crown Prince has launched a series of economic and social reforms to diversify the Saudi economy, highlighting the significant delegation of ministers and businessmen accompanying him to Paris.
In another article by “Le Figaro,” the presence of the Crown Prince was seen as to signify “the importance attached by the Kingdom to this event.”
The article added that the Crown Prince aims to meet as many international leaders as possible during his stay in Paris, particularly African leaders, in order to promote Riyadh’s candidacy.
French sources also reported that the Crown Prince may visit the Paris Air Show, which commences its activities on Sunday, marking its 54th edition. They suggested that he may take the opportunity to announce the purchase of “Airbus” aircraft.
In this context, “Le Figaro” stated that the Crown Prince intends to attend the inaugural flight of an aircraft belonging to the newly launched “Riyadh Air.”
Consultations between Macron and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman extend beyond Middle Eastern affairs to encompass global issues, with a particular emphasis on the Ukrainian conflict.
French media drew attention to Macron’s efforts to persuade Saudi Arabia to utilize its influence with Russia to find a resolution to the ongoing war that upholds Ukraine's sovereignty and integrity.
The article notes that Riyadh is one of the few capitals in the world that maintains communication channels with both Russian and Ukrainian parties.
