French PM, top officials in Saudi Arabia to promote business, military deals

Published October 12, 2015

France's prime minister and a delegation of top French officials arrived in Saudi Arabia on Monday for two days of talks with senior royals, including King Salman.

Manuel Valls is traveling with Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius and Defense Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian. A number of military and business deals are expected to be announced during their visit.

The state-run Saudi Press Agency said Valls was greeted at the airport by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Nayef and Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

He was in Egypt prior to visiting Saudi Arabia, where Cairo's government signed a deal to buy two French-made Mistral warships.

The alliance between France and Saudi Arabia has grown stronger in recent years as ties between Washington and Riyadh cooled under President Barack Obama.

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