Saudi Arabia and Qatar – Visit by Catherine Colonna (June 7-8, 2023)

Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Catherine Colonna will be visiting Saudi Arabia and Qatar on June 7 and 8.

In Saudi Arabia, she will take part in the ministerial meeting of the Global Coalition to Defeat Daesh, which is being held in Riyadh on June 8.

The French minister will reaffirm France’s determination to continue its relentless fight against terrorism and will call on the coalition to maintain its collective military and civilian efforts.

She will emphasize the need for the coalition to continue its activities in the Eastern Mediterranean in order to counter Daesh’s strategy of resurgence. She will stress that France has been committed to stabilizing and providing humanitarian aid to Iraq and Syria on a continuous basis since 2017 and she will announce a substantial contribution for 2023.

The French minister will express her support for the Global Coalition to Defeat Daesh’s engagement in Africa alongside other international actors involved in the fight against terrorism, in partnership with African countries. She will also stress the need to pursue a comprehensive approach to counterterrorism that focuses on the safety of populations, governance, and respect for international law and human rights.

She will call for stepping up cooperation in the fight against the threat posed by Daesh and Al-Qaeda in Afghanistan and Central Asia, noting that the Taliban’s increasing violations of fundamental rights and liberties can only play into the hands of terrorist organizations.

The minister will pay her first visit to Qatar, where she will be hosted by Qatari Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, H.E. Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani. On June 8, they will co-chair the second session of the strategic dialogue between our two countries in Doha, which will touch on every aspect of our bilateral cooperation. They will also address regional issues ahead of the Baghdad Conference, including the issue of Lebanon, as well as international crises, beginning with the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine and its consequences for energy and food security. They will hold a joint press conference after this meeting.

UN – Election of new non-permanents members of the Security Council (June 7, 2023)

France congratulates Algeria, Guyana, Sierra Leone, Slovenia and South Korea on their June 6^th election to the UN Security Council.

It will work closely with each of these partners, whose two-year term will begin on January 1, 2024, to enable the Security Council to fully assume its eminent responsibility to maintain international peace and security in accordance with the UN Charter.

As a permanent member of the Security Council, France reaffirms its commitment to the multilateral system and the peaceful resolution of disputes, at a time when the international community is facing numerous attacks on international security.

Iran – Iran announces the development of a new ballistic missile (June 7, 2023)

France notes with concern Iran’s June 6^th announcements concerning the development of a new ballistic missile with a declared range of 1,400 kilometers (870 miles).

This is yet another breach of UN Security Council Resolution 2231. These activities come amid the continued escalation of Iranian’s nuclear and ballistic programs. We remain fully mobilized to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons.