UAE canceled the deal to buy 80 Rafale from France, you will be shocked to know the reason

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has canceled the $20 billion deal to buy 80 Rafales with France. This decision of the UAE came after the arrest of Telegram CEO and founder Pavel Durov by the French administration. Despite Pavel Durov’s release on bail, relations between the UAE and France have become tense.

Pavel Durov holds citizenship of UAE among other countries. He was arrested at Paris airport on Saturday while returning from Azerbaijan. French authorities made this arrest on charges of financial crime, cyber crime, drug trafficking and child exploitation on the Telegram platform.

Pavel Durov rejected these allegations and called his arrest politically motivated. He said that this action was taken against him because he refused to give backdoor access to Telegram to Western countries. According to media reports, Pavel Durov is considered close to UAE and UAE expressed displeasure over his arrest. UAE also called it a violation of diplomatic relations.

Durov’s relations in the United Arab Emirates, especially his relations with the Emir’s son Zayed Al Nahyan, have caused tension in the relations between the two countries. Pavel Durov’s arrest is being said to be the main reason behind the decision to cancel the Rafale deal with French company Dassault in 2021.

The UAE had signed a $20 billion deal to buy 80 Rafales in 2021. This was the biggest defense deal made by the UAE in recent years. Under this, the UAE was to get 80 Rafales. The first batch of Rafales was expected to be received in 2027. In such a situation, the cancellation of this deal has not only caused financial loss to France, but is also being seen as a deterioration in its relations with the UAE.