MBS’ France visit spotlights growing economic ties
France has become the fourth-largest investor in Saudi Arabia, and MBS is returning the favor.
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman wrapped up a trip to France by signing a multitude of deals centered on the crown prince's key interests, including artificial intelligence, geopolitics, and video games. France has now become the fourth-largest investor in Saudi Arabia, and the Saudi leader is reciprocating by committing €6 billion to a theme park in Paris, among other agreements worth over $10 billion.
The French company CMA CGM will build a new port terminal in Jeddah for the kingdom, as it seeks to reduce its dependence on the Strait of Hormuz. In the field of artificial intelligence, Saudi champion HUMAIN agreed to collaborate with France’s Mistral on localizing AI models, believing that the demand for sovereign AI will increase.
However, the Crown Prince's visit likely stood out to him due to the Esports World Cup, which has been relocated from Riyadh to Paris because of the Iran war. MBS has attended the event annually since it was founded in 2024.
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