Government | Friday 24 June, 2016 5:42 am |

 Deputy Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman, second deputy premier and minister of defense, will travel to Paris next week to reinforce growing ties between the two countries, the French Embassy in Riyadh said on Thursday.

Prince Muhammad will hold talks on Monday with President Francois Hollande. 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 Deputy Crown Prince, who is currently in the United States, has met President Barack Obama, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, and has held talks with leaders of major US corporations and IT giants. Prince Muhammad is behind the Kingdom’s wide-ranging Vision 2030 plan to diversify Saudi Arabia’s oil-dependent economy. The plan, unveiled in April, is complemented by the National Transformation Program, which sets five-year targets for a tripling of non-oil revenue and other measures.

France’s ties with Saudi Arabia have grown under Hollande, and Prince Muhammad’s visit to France serves “to underline and deepen the excellence of the global French-Saudi strategic partnership”, an embassy statement said. The Deputy Crown 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 Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman.

Through the joint committee both countries are seeking to reinforce diverse ties ranging from defense to energy, health, agriculture and sport. During meetings with French politicians, including Prime Minister Manuel Valls, the two sides will look at “new perspectives of cooperation in the framework of the National Transformation Program”, the embassy said. “Major regional issues will also be touched upon.”

Prince Muhammad is also expected to meet with French business leaders. On a visit to Riyadh in October, Valls announced agreements, some that were still to be finalized, worth $11 billion in a range of sectors. France is the third-biggest foreign investor in Saudi Arabia.