French President Emmanuel Macron announced a trip to the United Arab Emirates to mourn the death of Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan and express his support for the ruling family, with whom France maintains lucrative business and military ties, Reuters reported.

Macron will travel to the UAE on Sunday, his administration said in a statement, to pay tribute to the country's president, who died on Friday, and express our support for his brother Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed and the rest of the family, as well as all the Emir people.

Khalifa, president of the UAE since 2004, was a pro-Western modernizer who brought the Gulf Arab state closer to the West, but since his stroke in 2014, he has rarely appeared in public. He was buried and prayers for the dead were held on Friday.

The UAE, which is the world's largest oil producer, is seen by France as a strategic partner in the region, and business ties, including the supply of military equipment and energy infrastructure, were strengthened during Macron's first term.

During a high-profile visit to Dubai in November, Macron showed good relations with Crown Prince Mohammed, the country's de facto leader, and business delegations from both countries signed a number of major deals.

The UAE has ordered 80 Dassault Aviation Rafale fighter jets and 12 military helicopters as part of a €17 billion arms deal that the French say will provide thousands of local jobs.

French energy giants TotalEnergies and Engie also won billion-euro deals.

Paris has a permanent military base in the capital of the Emirates.