The French president, Emmanuel Macron, made public this Wednesday a new understanding with Saudi Arabia to extend "as many months as necessary" the extraordinary fuel shipments. The announcement comes after an unplanned stop in Riyadh, where the French leader met with the Saudi crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman.
"An agreement has been reached with the Saudi authorities to extend for as many months as necessary the additional quantities of diesel that they had provided us to ensure the supply of our country," the Élysée announced in a statement.
According to the newspaper 'Le Figaro', Macron's unexpected stop in the Saudi capital was limited to about three hours and concluded a tour of the Gulf region that this week took him to Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, and the United Arab Emirates.
The pact with Riyadh is known just a day after the French head of state closed an additional monthly supply of 200,000 tons of diesel from Abu Dhabi and Manama. These shipments are added to a previous commitment with Saudi Arabia, which contemplated 95,000 tons for October and November, as reported by the newspaper 'Le Monde'.
With this package of agreements, Paris aims to ensure the energy flow and contain the rise in prices at French gas stations. All this in a context marked by months of blockage in the Strait of Hormuz and by the growing tension around the Bab el Mandeb Strait, linked to the escalation of the conflict between Houthi rebels and Saudi Arabia, the main supporter of the internationally recognized Yemeni government.
In parallel, the French government confirmed a week ago the activation of a military support program for Saudi Arabia that includes the deployment of troops and military equipment. The objective is to reinforce the protection of the Yanbu oil complex against insurgent attacks.