DUBAI: The United Arab Emirates signed a fabulous 14-billion-euro contract for 80 Rafale warplanes and committed billions of euros in other deals as French President Emmanuel Macron kicked off a Gulf tour on Friday.
The biggest international order ever made for the French jets came as Macron held talks with Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed at the start of a two-day trip which will also take in Qatar and Saudi Arabia.
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The resource-rich UAE, one of the French defence industry’s biggest customers, also inked an order for 12 Caracal military transport helicopters for a total bill of more than 17 billion euros.
Historic contract’
The Rafale order, signed on Friday while Macron met with Sheikh Mohammed at Dubai’s Expo site, is the biggest made internationally for the Dassault Aviation aircraft since it entered service in 2004.
It follows the collapse of a multibillion-dollar submarine deal with Australia in September that left Paris fuming after Canberra negotiated a new defence pact with London and Washington.
French Defence Minister Florence Parly called it a “historic contract” which will contribute “directly to regional stability”. The F4 model Rafales, currently under development, will be delivered from 2027.
“This is an outcome of the strategic partnership between the two countries, consolidating their capacity to act together for their autonomy and security,” the French presidency said in a statement.
By snapping up the fighter aircraft the UAE is eclipsing the fleets of Gulf rival Qatar, which has bought 36 of the planes, and Egypt which ordered 24 in 2015 and 30 earlier this year.
