Timeframe: When Sheikh Zayed honoured Jacques Chirac in Abu Dhabi in 1997

UAE’s Founding Father and late French president were known to have a very close relationship

UAE Founding Father the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan honours France's Jacques Chirac with the Order of Zayed in Abu Dhabi on December 16, 1997. AFP

Former French president Jacques Chirac held a strong relationship with the UAE and its leaders. Evident to that is the naming of a street on Saadiyat Island in his honour, in the capital Abu Dhabi. The island is also home to Louvre Abu Dhabi, perhaps the biggest symbol of strength in the UAE-France relationship.

A flashpoint in the relationship between the two countries came on December 16, 1997 when Chirac visited Abu Dhabi to meet UAE President Sheikh Zayed. During that visit, Sheikh Zayed presented Chirac with the Order of Zayed medal, the UAE's highest civilian honour. The medal, which is made of gold, has been granted to many presidents and dignitaries from around the world over the years, including former US President George W Bush, the President of Egypt Abdel Fattah El Sisi and the King Abdullah II of Jordan.

Chirac, who was the president of France between 1995 and 2007, was on a two-day visit to the UAE in which he also met current UAE President Sheikh Mohamed and former President Sheikh Khalifa. During the visit, a deal was signed between the two countries on the sale of 30 Mirage fighter Jets from France.

Sheikh Zayed and Chirac had already met on a number of occasions before the UAE trip. Their first meeting was during Sheikh Zayed's first presidential tour of France in 1975, during which Chirac was prime minister. They met for the second time in 1991 on another state visit to France, when Chirac was the Mayor of Paris.

In 2022, during his own state visit to France, President Sheikh Mohamed showed images from that visit to current French President Emmanuel Macron. Sheikh Mohamed, who was only 14 at the time, is smartly dressed in a suit, looking on as his father greets the French president Valery Giscard d’Estaing. Chirac can also be seen in the photos.

Before his presidency, Chirac served as prime minister of France on two occasions, 1974 to 1976, and 1986 to 1988. He was the Mayor of Paris between 1988 and 1995.

Chirac passed away in 2019, shortly after which Abu Dhabi named a street on Saadiyat island after him. The ceremony was attended by dignitaries from both nations.

“My father believed that different nations needed to have dialogue and share their culture. My mother and I would like to thank you for reviving his memory in the Arab world," Chirac's daughter Claude Chirac said at the event. “I think that my father must be very happy from where he is, with great humility and much joy. I greatly thank the UAE authorities for this decision. It was a great solace for us.”

After the ceremony, Ms Chirac met Sheikh Mohamed, who was then Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, at a Sea Palace barza in the capital, along with members of Comite Colbert, an association of 84 French luxury houses and 16 cultural institutions.

Mohammed Al Ahbabi, chairman of the Department of Urban Planning and Municipalities, said at the ceremony that the street-naming showed the appreciation for Chirac's achievements. “The inauguration of Jacques Chirac Street expresses our leaders’ deep respect for the late president, as well as their appreciation for his stance towards the UAE on a regional and international level, and outstanding achievements in support of peace and stability in the Middle East and North Africa," he said.