Saudi-Spanish corvette deal on the cards

Saudi Arabia’s crown prince meets the Spanish king in Madrid on 5 April as he continues his global diplomatic charm offensive in a bid to project a new liberal image of his conservative kingdom.

Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s trip to Spain comes hot on the heels of a two-day official visit to France and after a tour lasting several weeks of the United States, Britain and Egypt, where the self-styled moderniser signed multimillion-dollar deals.

According to Spain’s El Pais daily, he is due to sign a contract to buy five warships from Spain for €2 billion ($2.4 billion), as well as other bilateral agreements.

Rights groups have denounced the planned sale - which has been under negotiation for two years - saying the corvettes could be used in Saudi Arabia’s military campaign in Yemen.

The Royal Saudi Navy operates a range of capable naval platforms, including three 4,700t Al Riyadh-class frigates (pictured).

Spain and Saudi Arabia’s royal families retain close ties due to King Felipe VI’s father Juan Carlos, who was a close friend of the kingdom’s late King Fahd, who reigned from 1982 to 2005, and is close to his brother King Salman.

Juan Carlos was credited with playing a decisive role in 2011 in helping a Spanish consortium win a contract worth €6.7 billion ($8.2 billion) to build a high-speed railway linking the cities of Mecca and Medina.

Spain is currently the seventh largest arms exporter in the world.