French President Emmanuel Macron has purportedly secured commitments for an extra 200,000 tonnes of diesel a month from the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, according to statements released by the French presidency. The announcements were made public on Tuesday just before the French leader arrived in Qatar.

The three-day Gulf tour, which also includes a scheduled stop in Kuwait, follows a weekend of widespread protests across France over soaring living costs. The acute energy crisis has been kept alive by ongoing geopolitical conflicts, leaving the European regime scrambling to secure alternative supply lines as crude and diesel prices remain critically high.

According to the Elysee Palace, the UAE has committed to approximately 100,000 tonnes monthly, while an additional 100,000 tonnes will be sourced during Macron's visit to Bahrain. Combined with existing agreements with Saudi Arabia, France now supposedly holds commitments for 295,000 tonnes per month, covering roughly 10 percent of its total national consumption.

Furthermore, Kuwait has reportedly given clear guarantees to supply diesel and kerosene to French overseas territories in the Indian Ocean. These shipments are intended to bypass the volatile Strait of Hormuz by transiting through Oman, avoiding the severe disruptions affecting the region's primary maritime trade routes.

Source: www.aljazeera.com