Europe 1 with AFP 3:35 p.m., December 20, 2022

During the regional support conference for Iraq, in Jordan, which is being held on Tuesday, President Emmanuel Macron congratulated Qatar for the Football World Cup and his "friend" Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sissi for the organization of COP27 in November.

Congratulations which are likely to stir up new criticism from the opposition. 

French President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday congratulated Qatar for the FIFA World Cup and his "friend" Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sissi for organizing COP27 in November, at the risk of attracting a new volley of reviews.

"We are finishing a World Cup which is the first in the Arab world and which was held in Qatar and I congratulate them," he said at a regional conference in support of Iraq on the shores of the Dead Sea in Jordan, at Sweimeh.

“The region is becoming a diplomatic epicentre”

"A few weeks ago a COP was completed which was organized by Egypt and I congratulate my friend President Sissi because Sharm el-Sheikh has succeeded in bringing the world together and settling part of the subject of losses and harm which was absolutely key," he added.

COP27 ended with the adoption of a highly disputed text on aid to poor countries affected by climate change, but also on a failure to set new ambitions for the reduction of greenhouse gases.

"And the next COP will be held in the United Arab Emirates, which shows how the region is becoming a diplomatic epicenter," said Emmanuel Macron.

The French head of state was strongly criticized by the opposition for having traveled twice to Qatar to support the French team and for his compliments on the organization of the event, despite the many controversies about human rights in this country and about the environmental impact of the Cup in air-conditioned stadiums.

Ties with the Egyptian president criticized

Qatar is also at the heart of an investigation into resounding suspicions of corruption in the European Parliament.

"I assume completely", launched the French president between the semi-final and the final of the Cup, finally lost by the Blues against the Argentines.

Emmanuel Macron is also regularly criticized by human rights defenders for his links with the Egyptian president despite the repression in this country.

He notably presented him with the highest French distinction, the Grand Cross of the Legion of Honor, during a state visit by Abdel Fattah al-Sissi to Paris in December 2020.