Since production will be running full-tilt until 2018, it seems odd to announce in effect, “If nobody buys this turkey we’ll have to stop making it.” I think he’s hurt the French marketing effort, if not killed it.
The King of Bahrain’s statements about “unworkable…uncompetitive…” etc. might translate into, “You know, I really like this thing but I want a better price.” Perhaps the French need to sweeten the deal with a huge discount on a couple of their commercial aircraft. (Bribes, called baksheesh in Bahrain, work too.)
For what it’s worth, I think this has nothing to do with prospective customers but rather is a warning to Dassault Aviation. Dassault negotiators were criticised for being intransigent on cost-sharing by the UAE despite lobbying by the French government. I’d assume the message here is there is no possibility of additional orders or sops for their combat aircraft division.