Macron and the Saudi Crown Prince together to help Lebanon<

French President Emmanuel Macron ended his express tour of the Gulf on Saturday by launching an initiative to help Lebanon with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, with whom he says he had an "uninhibited" discussion on human rights. .

The reunion with the strong man of Ryad, "MBS", was eagerly awaited, three years after the shock caused by the assassination of the Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in the consulate of the kingdom in Istanbul.

"We talked about everything without any taboos. And we were obviously able to raise the issue of human rights (...) and it was a direct exchange," said Emmanuel Macron. "The next few weeks and months will allow us to see if we are making progress on this subject."

Riyadh claimed Khashoggi's assassination was carried out by Saudi agents acting alone, but a US intelligence report accuses the crown prince of having "validated" it, a charge Saudi Arabia emphatically denies.

Emmanuel Macron justified his meeting with the Crown Prince, one of the first for a Western leader since this affair, because "dialogue with Saudi Arabia is a necessity" because of its "demographic, economic, historical and religious".

The two leaders, Mr. Macron reported, "spoke at length" about Lebanon during their meeting at the royal palace in Jeddah (west) before calling Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati together on the phone to try to find a solution. outcome of the diplomatic quarrel between Beirut and Ryad.

- "Reengagement" -

"Saudi Arabia and France want to fully commit" to a "reengagement of the relationship" between Beirut and the kingdom.

Saudi Arabia recalled its ambassador to Beirut at the end of October and expelled the Lebanese ambassador following remarks by Information Minister George Kordahi criticizing the military intervention led by the Saudi kingdom, at the head of a coalition, in Yemen and defending pro-Iranian Houthi rebels there.

Mr Kordahi has since announced his resignation on Friday, stressing that it was France's wish.

Riyadh has also banned exports from Lebanon, and three other Gulf countries -- Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait -- have taken retaliatory measures against Beirut. This further aggravated the severe Lebanese economic crisis.

French President Emmanuel Macron and the Emir of Qatar in Doha, December 3, 2021

Thomas SAMSON-AFP

MM. Macron and Bin Salman also expressed their "will that the (Lebanese) government can work in a normal way, meet as quickly as possible, and carry out the useful reforms", added the French president, specifying that he would call his Lebanese counterpart on Sunday. Michael Aoun.

Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati for his part spoke on Twitter of an "important step towards the resumption of historic fraternal relations with Saudi Arabia" after the telephone interview.

The Saudi authorities had not communicated on this joint initiative after the departure of Mr. Macron for Paris.

- "Useful trip" -

The latter declared himself satisfied with his tour which took him in two days to the Emirates, Qatar and Saudi Arabia.

“It was a useful trip” because “our presence here, in this geopolitical moment, was important”, he declared, as the Gulf countries seek to diversify their interlocutors with the American attention now turned towards the 'Asia.

His stopover in Dubai enabled him to record a historic agreement for the acquisition by the Emirates of 80 Rafale combat aircraft – a record order for the fighter aircraft that entered service in 2004 – for 14 billion euros. Other military contracts (helicopters and armaments) brought the total up to 17 billion euros.

In Saudi Arabia, Airbus will supply 26 civil helicopters to a Saudi company, while Veolia has won a contract to manage Riyadh's drinking water services, the two groups announced on Saturday.

Veolia has also extended its ties with oil giant Saudi Aramco. It becomes its "exclusive partner" for the treatment of its industrial and non-hazardous waste, i.e. 200,000 tonnes per year, in addition to the 120,000 tonnes of hazardous waste already handled by the French group.

In Doha, Emmanuel Macron "thanked" Qatar for having organized the evacuation of 258 Afghans from their country, now in the hands of the Taliban, and "threatened because of their commitments" or "their links with France". These refugees must be repatriated to France after passing through the emirate.

By Jérôme RIVET / Jeddah (Saudi Arabia) (AFP) / © 2021 AFP