ABU DHABI (AFP) – The UAE’s new
president, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, held talks Sunday with French counterpart Emmanuel Macron as world leaders streamed in to the oil-rich Persian Gulf state to pay tribute to his late predecessor.
Macron, on his first foreign trip since his second term started last week, expressed his condolences to the leader dubbed “MBZ” following the death of his half-brother Sheikh Khalifa on Friday after a long illness.
Macron, the first Western leader to pay his respects, will be followed by British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris and Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Zionist president and the king of Spain, among a long list of dignitaries.
MBZ has been quietly running the country since 2014 when Sheikh Khalifa, his 73-year-old half-brother, was sidelined by a stroke. The cause of his death was not announced.
Presidents and monarchs from Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Oman and Tunisia and Sudan’s de facto ruler were among the leaders to offer their condolences on Saturday.
On Sunday, Qatar’s emir, Bahrain’s king and the Palestinian, German and Indonesian presidents were among more than 20 senior officials expected.