Jacques Serais, edited by Laura Laplaud
modified to
8:17 a.m., July 29, 2022
Emmanuel Macron received Mohammed ben Salmane (MBS) Thursday evening at the Élysée. Accused of having ordered, four years ago, the assassination of the Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, the Saudi crown prince was not welcome. But with the war in Ukraine and the sanctions against Russia, Mohamed Ben Salmane has once again become someone to be seen.
Mohammed ben Salmane (MBS) was received Thursday evening at the Élysée Palace for a working dinner. If the oil supply was at the heart of the discussions between the two leaders, the visit of the crown prince is controversial, considered persona non grata since the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi four years ago. But since the start of the war in Ukraine and also the sanctions taken against Russia, the situation has changed.
The Elysée assumes. For the presidency, this dinner was necessary in view of the rise in energy prices, the food crisis in the Middle East and concerns related to the Iranian nuclear program.
Faced with the controversy, the castle clarified that Emmanuel Macron had addressed the issue of human rights, as he does each time with Mohammed ben Salman. But this working dinner had as its central issue, the question of oil.
Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest oil exporter
Saudi Arabia is the world’s leading exporter of crude oil and the only country capable of supplying the markets with two to three million barrels every day, which is what Europe needs, since the European Union made the choice to to deprive itself of this quantity by sanctioning Russia.
According to an adviser, “if we want to confront each other, to tackle the consequences of the energy and food crises, the only way is to speak with all the main actors”. The Élysée denies doing realpolitik: “It’s just politics”, says another adviser. Even if it means rehabilitating Mohammed ben Salman after sanctioning Vladimir Putin.