French support and revival of the Lebanese economy

Macron will visit Aoun at Baabda Palace and hold individual talks with him, followed by an expanded meeting and then a press conference for the two presidents. He will also meet Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, Prime Minister-designate Nawaf Salam, and caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati. He will also meet the two generals in the ceasefire monitoring committee, as well as the commander of UNIFIL forces.

Al-Diyar wrote: Macron’s coming to Lebanon at this time aims to overcome the remaining obstacles, including the political crisis that occurred between the Shiite duo and a political party. President Nabih Berri will meet with the French President, and this meeting will be an important step in how things are going in Lebanon.

An-Nahar wrote: On the eve of French President Emmanuel Macron’s quick visit to Lebanon on Friday, the French presidency expressed its conviction that the positive development that occurred in Lebanon with the election of President Joseph Aoun and the assignment of President Nawaf Salam to form the government gives Lebanon, in the tense circumstances in the region, the means to Implementing its priorities.

A presidential official who spoke to the press before the visit said that President Macron constantly repeats that Lebanon’s moral size is greater than its physical size, and this means that it can, in light of the fragmentation of the Middle East, carry a message of unity with the diversity of sects and people in it. Lebanon has a special symbolic and strategic value in Middle East today. He pointed out that for France, the relationship with Lebanon is not only a historical, emotional and humanitarian relationship, but also to contribute to what could represent the new Lebanon. This is what France wants to do, which the French President had previously discussed with the political forces in 2020 to help their country guarantee its sovereignty. Prosperity and adherence to its unity. The French official stated that France has a long-standing commitment to supporting the army and assisting it with equipment, and also through its work within the framework of UNIFIL since 1978. This French commitment to ensuring Lebanon’s sovereignty was strengthened in cooperation with the American allies in working to achieve a ceasefire in Lebanon, and also in France’s participation in the monitoring committee for the ceasefire. fire.

He stressed that restoring sovereignty to all Lebanese lands is essential for France, especially since it is part of Resolution 1701, which represents the pillar of our commitment in UNIFIL to Lebanon. Now there is a real opportunity for Lebanon to show that the state is capable of guaranteeing its sovereignty over its entire territory, and this is what President Joseph Aoun indicated in his speech before Parliament, and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam confirmed in his first statements. Then, France, the presidential official said, wants to accompany the Lebanese state to help it implement the plan to reform the Lebanese economy, which first passes through an agreement with the International Monetary Fund with international support conditional on reviving the Lebanese economy and restoring international confidence in Lebanon.

As for Hezbollah, the official saw that it was greatly weakened after the Israeli war, and also strategically after the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime in Syria. There is a possibility for Lebanon to return to its role as a political party, since the amount of its weapons has declined, as has its external support.

The official pointed out that Macron had agreed that Hezbollah would be among the political forces he had dialogue with in 2020, and his message was: return to politics and give up weapons, and he will repeat this message, especially since there is a country that can defend the country.

In addition, French presidential officials pointed out the important role of French-Saudi coordination and joint work on Lebanon during President Macron’s state visit to Saudi Arabia and his meeting with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. They praised Saudi Arabia’s involvement in playing an important role in the five-member committee with Le Drian to reach the election of President Joseph Aoun, and the role of Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan and the person responsible for the Lebanese file, Prince Yazid bin Farhan, in coordinating with the French side. They said that the efforts of American envoy Amos Hockstein with France to achieve a ceasefire were essential.