Deputy Crown Prince, Hollande to Discuss Regional Issues in Paris Monday

Paris- Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, second deputy premier and minister of defense, will meet with French President Francois Hollande during an official visit to Paris next week to discuss regional issues and means to promote ties between the two countries.

This will be Prince Mohammed’s second official visit to France and will aim at consolidating the existing distinguished partnership between Riyadh and Paris in line with Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030.

On Tuesday, the Deputy Crown Prince, who is also chairman of the Council of Economic and Development Affairs, and French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault will co-chair the third meeting of the Saudi-French Joint Committee, the French Embassy in Riyadh said in a statement.

The prince made his first official visit to Paris in June last year for the inaugural Saudi-French joint committee, following a summit meeting in Riyadh between Hollande and Gulf leaders including King Salman bin Abdulaziz.

Through the joint committee both countries are seeking to reinforce diverse ties ranging from defense to energy, health, agriculture and sport.

In a statement, the French embassy in Riyadh said that the first meeting of the joint committee was held in Paris in June 2015 and the second was organized in Riyadh in October last year. The meetings have confirmed that the relationship between Saudi Arabia and France was based on mutual trust and friendship, the embassy added.

The French embassy also said that the Saudi-French joint committee aims at promoting comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries and deepening the existing excellent relations in the different sectors of economy, tourism and environment.

Discussions between the Deputy Crown Prince and Hollande are expected to tackle the promising investment opportunities within Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030, as well as regional issues and the situation in the Middle East.

The Kingdom is seeking to implement a wide-ranging Vision 2030 plan to diversify Saudi Arabia’s oil-dependent economy. The plan, unveiled in April, includes a National Transformation Program, which sets a five-year target for tripling non-oil revenue and other measures.

During his trip, Prince Mohammed will also hold meetings with French politicians, including Prime Minister Manuel Valls. The two sides will discuss “new perspectives of cooperation in the framework of the National Transformation Program,” the embassy said in its statement.

On the sidelines of these meetings, high-ranking Saudi economists will hold talks with French business leaders with the aim to encourage Saudi companies to invest in France on one hand, and attract French companies to work in Saudi Arabia on the other hand.