France Sending Soldiers To Saudi, Stating “Not Getting Involved In Any Conflict”

Authored by Mike Shedlock via MishTalk,

Check out this Orwellian statement by French President Emmanuel Macron.

France to Deploy Forces to Saudi Arabia Red

The Wall Street Journal reports France to Deploy Forces to Protect Saudi Red Sea Oil Port

“We are going to send military assets, that is, soldiers, radar systems, and defense systems to protect this site,” Macron said in a TV interview on Thursday. However, he stressed that France was “not getting involved in any conflict,” adding that the decision had been finalized with Saudi authorities.

We need to pause her for a second and reflect on how and why sending soldiers to Saudi is “not getting involved in any conflict.”

In the absence of sending troops one might have a poor claim. But this is insane.

What happens if someone is killed while not getting involved?

Asked whether France could deploy Rafale jet fighters to help protect the site, Macron said it would depend on how the situation evolves, adding that some planes were already in the region.

Stretching 750 miles across Saudi Arabia from the kingdom’s oil-producing heartland on the Persian Gulf to the Red Sea port of Yanbu, the East-West pipeline has become a vital wartime artery, allowing Saudi crude to reach global markets without passing through the Strait of Hormuz. It was built in the early 1980s, when the Iran-Iraq War threatened shipping in the Persian Gulf.

The pipeline can carry up to 7 million barrels a day – about 2 million for domestic Saudi refiners and the rest for export – but had never operated at full capacity for an extended period before the war.

Saudi Arabia said the pipeline was hit in multiple attacks in the Riyadh and Medina regions on Sept. 10, which caused injuries. It said the drones were fired from Iraq, where authorities have struggled to control Iran-backed militias that have repeatedly targeted Saudi infrastructure.

Two Things This Tells Us

Macron is desperate
France is woefully short of diesel

Average EU Diesel Price Hits Record 2.23 Euros a Litre

France24 reports Average EU Diesel Price Hits Record 2.23 Euros a Litre

Diesel prices at pumps across the European Union have hit a new high of 2.23 euros per litre, up from 2.16 euros the previous week, an AFP analysis of European Commission data published Thursday showed.

The fresh peak – equivalent to $9.63 per US gallon – comes as the wars in the Middle East and Ukraine have choked off crude supplies and damaged refineries, causing energy prices to surge worldwide.

Nineteen EU countries including Germany, France and Italy have registered record average prices, according to weekly data going back to 2005.

Among the countries setting new records, Denmark and Finland have reported the highest prices, at 2.56 euros per litre of diesel, followed by Germany at 2.46 euros.

Prices in Belgium and France are both close to 2.40 euros and are nearly 2.30 euros in Italy.

The Domestic Fallout in France

The severe price shock – supercharged by the ongoing wars disrupting global refining capacity and Middle East supplies – is creating immediate political and economic problems for Macron’s government:

Subsidies and Empty Coffers: To head off potential street protests, the French government just doubled its targeted fuel relief package to €450 million, offering €100 payouts to low-income, high-mileage commuters. This brings total emergency energy relief spending to €1.4 billion, severely blowing out France’s budget deficit.
Supply Shortages & Protests: Roughly 16% of French petrol stations are currently reporting shortages of at least one fuel type. Angry fishermen have already resorted to blocking oil depots and Mediterranean ports to protest the devastating impact of fuel costs on their livelihoods.

This domestic crisis is precisely why Macron is using the “infrastructure security detail” narrative to justify deployment to the Yanbu port.

Macron is attempting to spin a military deployment as a direct kitchen-table defense against the energy shock hitting French drivers.

Three Things Macron Did Not Do

Blame Biden
Blame Obama
Blame Trump

Only one of those makes any sense. And that’s door #3 of course.

But that’s OK because nothing can possibly go wrong. Trump says peace talks with Iran are back on.

The “sources” are back

U.S. and Iranian negotiators are discussing a phased agreement to end the conflict: Reuters

But…

The main obstacle remains sequencing: neither side wants to surrender its leverage first, leaving negotiations fragile.

— zerohedge (@zerohedge) September 24, 2026