The move signals a shift in France’s approach to defence cooperation with Saudi Arabia, although the scale of its military commitment remains unclear (Representative image: Reuters).
Since the beginning of 2026, Saudi Arabia has deployed significant American surface-to-air defence systems to strengthen its air defences. Foreign ministry spokesperson Pascal Confavreux announced, as he declined to provide details about the assets deployed to the kingdom, Reuters reported. In March, France announced that it would send surface-to-air defence systems to the United Arab Emirates to fulfil its longstanding defence agreement with the Gulf state.
On September 24, French President Emmanuel Macron announced the deployment of “military means” to Saudi Arabia to protect the Yanbu oil terminal. Defence cooperation between Paris and Riyadh had traditionally been discreet and ambiguous, with France exercising considerable caution in defining its role, according to Le Monde. “Soldiers, radars, defence systems” will be deployed, Macron said during a television interview from the Elysée Palace, as cited by Le Monde.
The terminal is the endpoint of the East-West pipeline and serves as a key export route for crude oil that bypasses the Strait of Hormuz. France’s move towards Riyadh is its second such initiative in the Middle East in recent months, following the outbreak of hostilities against Iran by Israel and the United States in February. The agreement includes a mutual assistance clause, largely linked to the presence of a significant French military base on Emirati territory. However, in recent days, US President Donald Trump has been reluctant to commit to direct military intervention, limiting Washington’s support to intelligence sharing instead.
France on Thursday said it has begun implementing operational elements of an agreement to help protect Saudi Arabia’s oil facilities as rising oil prices inflate the cost of living for Paris.