Saudi Prince in Europe for first time since Khashoggi killing

SAUDI Arabia’s crown prince Mohammed Salman will visit Greece and France from Tuesday (Jul 26) for talks with their leaders, his first European trip since the 2018 killing of columnist Jamal Khashoggi damaged the kingdom’s ties with the West.

The crown prince will discuss bilateral relations and issues of common interest, state news agency SPA reported, without providing further details.

In Greece, Saudi officials will sign a number of bilateral agreements in defence technology, maritime transport, food production and culture during the prince’s two-day stay, according to a person familiar with the matter who requested anonymity as the discussions are still private. Representatives from several Saudi businesses will explore potential partnerships, the person said. 

Saudi Arabia’s de facto leader will seek to build on a visit to the kingdom by Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis in October. Greece has sent Patriot missiles to Saudi Arabia, which in recent years has faced missile and drone attacks on its energy facilities by Houthi fighters in neighbouring Yemen.

And in May, Greece and Saudi Arabia agreed to collaborate on an US$816 million land and sub-sea data cable that will turn Greece into a digital hub connecting Europe and Asia. Athens and Riyadh have also set up a business council. 

Prince Mohammed was vilified in the US and Europe following the murder of Washington Post columnist Khashoggi by Saudi agents at the kingdom’s consulate in Istanbul.

He has denied he had any involvement in the killing, while accepting symbolic responsibility for it as the country’s de facto ruler. 

President Joe Biden vowed during his election campaign to turn the world’s biggest oil exporter into a pariah.

But in a sign of how the world has moved on, Biden fist-bumped with Prince Mohammed in Jeddah this month as the US leader hoped to encourage the Saudis to increase oil production in order to lower surging US gasoline prices.

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French President Emmanuel Macron had already beaten a path to Saudi Arabia, in December becoming the first western leader to travel there and meet the crown prince since the Khashoggi killing. 

The two countries have ties in fields such as defence and France has been extensively involved in the development of Saudi Arabia’s historic Al Ula region, which Prince Mohammed wants to turn into a global tourist destination. BLOOMBERG