French envoy to UAE highlights dangers of military escalation in call for regional peace

Everyone loses if there is any further military escalation in the Middle East, France’s ambassador to the UAE has said.

Nicolas Niemtchinow said from the recent Israel-Iran war to Gaza, France was calling for peaceful solutions.

And his country was working with the UAE to do everything it could diplomatically to avoid any escalation of tensions in what was an increasingly “unpredictable” world.

“We want to promote a peaceful solution through negotiations,” he said, referring to the Israel-Iran war. We don't want more military escalation in this region because … that's a loss for everybody,” Mr Niemtchinow told The National.

In a wide-ranging interview to mark France’s national day that falls on July 14, Mr Niemtchinow reflected on the regional tensions of the past few months, how France worked for peace and how the UAE and his country had been co-operating in a major way on artificial intelligence.

On the Iranian-Israel conflict, the envoy said while Iran was not an “easy partner” but we are committing our “best efforts to preserve this ceasefire”, which is important because the “solution should be political”.

Mr Niemtchinow said events in the region and world this year were “very dangerous, very unpredictable”.

“But what I can tell you as the French ambassador here is that our bilateral co-operation was always extremely active, always extremely creative.”

Addressing conflicts

On Gaza, the envoy reiterated calls for a ceasefire, the release of hostages and “immediate and complete access for humanitarian aid … to alleviate the sufferings of the population”.

French president Emmanuel Macron has been vocal about the Palestinian cause and pushing for a two-state solution soon. France and Saudi Arabia are also co-chairing a conference expected later this month to discuss Palestinian statehood. It had been delayed because of the Israel-Iran conflict.

“Gaza is poisoning the political climate in this region,” said Mr Niemtchinow.

“We all lose when we have an open conflict and escalation. This is not good for the economy, for trade, for prosperity or for the people.”

Turning to the situation in Ukraine, Mr Niemtchinow said there was still a war going on in Europe. He called for a ceasefire, peace and a political situation “but not at any price”.

“The European position is so firm because what is at stake is our security,” he said.

“We should not forget that war is going on in Europe,” he said. “Security of Ukraine is the security of Europe.”

Despite the turmoil of the past few months, the envoy said it was not stressful and he and his team at the embassy were “mobilised for the challenges”.

Building ties

It has been a busy year for French-UAE relations. Ties between the two are warm and historic stretching back decades encompassing everything from culture to space to defence. About 33,000 French call the UAE home but the true figure is far higher as not everyone registers with the embassy. About 80 per cent of this figure resident in Dubai.

Bilateral trade is about €8.5 billion ($9.9 billion) a year and growing by 15 per cent annually, the embassy said. Louvre Abu Dhabi on Abu Dhabi’s Saadiyat Island and Sorbonne University Abu Dhabi on Reem Island are among the most visible expressions of this relationship but this year has also seen a major partnership in artificial intelligence with both sides in February signing a deal aiming to create a one gigawatt data centre dedicated to AI in France.

Mr Niemtchinow said it was far more than a data centre, as the initiative is dedicated to innovation, education and scaling up the use of artificial intelligence with investments in the tens of millions of dollars.

“Artificial intelligence is something very important,” he said. “And not just because it's fashionable,” he said.

“Artificial intelligence is power … It will change our life. But we should monitor the way we develop artificial intelligence to preserve our life and to preserve human intelligence.”

Mr Niemtchinow said many potential uses from space to tackling climate change. France, too has been at the forefront of climate issues and the UN's oceans conference in Nice this year sought to protect the world’s seas. He said it was crucial that global warming and biodiversity loss were not forgotten despite a year of global uncertainty.

“We are at this kind of crossroads now between all those challenges.”

Escaping politics of the past

The envoy also said the “politics of the past” − violence and war − was making a comeback in some areas. And this was something that needed to be tackled.

“Do you think that attacking Ukraine three and a half years ago and killing young people – that is something positive for our world? That’s … the policy of the past,” he said. “We should fight against that.”

He urged global co-operation on peace and stability, AI, trade, and climate change.

“This is what we have to do for the next generation,” he said.

The French community will gather for a special function in the capital on Monday to mark its national day and Mr Niemtchinow said it was a moment to pay tribute to that “unique partnership” it has built with the UAE that was crucial in an “unpredictable world”.

“Every day we have a new strategic surprise so the trust and the confidence of this bilateral relationship is something very important for both countries,” he said.

“Because we need that kind of stability and that kind of partnership aimed at preparing a future of peace.”