French President Emmanuel Macron is due to conclude his Gulf tour on Wednesday in Qatar, as France seeks to strengthen ties with regional partners amid heightened tension and concerns over energy security.
His visit comes as France braces for fresh protests on Saturday, following a weekend of demonstrations over the soaring cost of living and high fuel prices that descended into rioting and looting. Authorities have introduced curfews in response to the unrest.
Mr Macron met Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim on Tuesday at Lusail Palace. They spoke about bilateral relations, as well as ways to strengthen and develop ties across various fields, particularly the economic, investment, security and defence sectors, the state-run Qatar News Agency reported.
Doha is the final stop on Mr Macron’s three-day tour, which also took him to Kuwait, the UAE and Bahrain, as he seeks to reinforce France’s strategic partnerships across the Gulf.
Qatar, one of the world’s leading liquefied natural gas exporters, has extensive energy and investment ties with France. French energy company TotalEnergies is a partner in Qatar’s North Field East LNG expansion project, one of the world’s largest gas developments.
Before arriving in Qatar, Mr Macron visited Bahrain, where he met King Hamad. Their discussions focused on bilateral relations, energy security and regional developments.
France has secured commitments from Bahrain and the UAE to each supply an additional 100,000 tonnes of diesel a month. Together with additional supplies from Saudi Arabia, the commitments amount to about 295,000 tonnes a month, equivalent to slightly more than 10 per cent of France’s usual diesel consumption.
Rising diesel prices have added to the cost-of-living pressures facing households in France and elsewhere. The International Energy Agency earlier this month urged member countries to accelerate pledged diesel releases and consider supplying additional volumes as global markets tightened.
European diesel is trading at almost $200 a barrel amid the Iran war and Ukrainian attacks on Russian oil refineries.
In Abu Dhabi, Mr Macron met UAE President Sheikh Mohamed. The two countries exchanged a strategic defence partnership framework and signed agreements covering energy, artificial intelligence and advanced technology.
Defence co-operation featured prominently in the visit, with France and the UAE signing an intergovernmental agreement on co-operation on the Dassault Rafale F5 standard within their respective Rafale programmes, reflecting efforts to deepen military ties amid geopolitical uncertainty stemming from the regional war.
Mr Macron began his tour in Kuwait on Monday, where agreements, memorandums of understanding and declarations of intent covering defence, civil aviation, artificial intelligence, investment, health and academic co-operation were signed.
He called for the protection of freedom of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz, a critical artery for international energy trade.