Beirut (Union)
Yesterday, during a two-day visit to Beirut, French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna urged Lebanese officials to avoid the presidential vacuum and expedite the election of a successor to current President Michel Aoun, whose term expires at the end of this month.
Parliament failed in two successive sessions to elect a president, in the absence of consensus among the main political blocs, which indicates that the election of an alternative may take a long time. This would further complicate the situation in the country, which is mired in a severe financial crisis.
Colonna, who met both Aoun, Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri and caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati, said in a press conference at the airport before leaving Beirut: “The constitutional entitlement must be respected, and it is an urgent need for Lebanon.” She stressed that “Lebanon can no longer bear the unprecedented economic crisis.”
“The challenge lies in avoiding any vacancy in power after the end of the term” of President Michel Aoun, she added. And she considered that “a president who is able to work with regional players to overcome the current crisis should be chosen. This is France’s position, as it is a unified position for all partners and friends of Lebanon.”
The deep divisions between the main blocs raise fears of a presidential vacuum. The same divisions have hampered Mikati’s efforts to form a new government since the parliamentary elections that took place in mid-May, in a country whose system is based on quotas between the political components.
Aoun was elected president in 2016 after a presidential vacancy that lasted more than two years due to the mismatch of the main forces.
Colonna stressed the need to form a government capable of carrying out the reforms demanded by the international community as a prerequisite for helping Lebanon.
For his part, Mikati reiterated his thanks to France for its constant support and support for Lebanon at all levels, and for the special relationship between France and the Lebanese people, which French President Emmanuel Macron expresses in all international forums.
Mikati asked the French minister to “support her country, Lebanon, in resolving the crisis of the displaced Syrians on its land and returning them to their country.”
Since 2019, Lebanon has witnessed an economic collapse that the World Bank ranked among the worst in the world, with which the local currency has lost about 95 percent of its value, and more than 80 percent of its population has become below the poverty line.
After long negotiations mediated by the United States, Lebanon and Israel agreed to an agreement to demarcate the maritime borders that would remove obstacles to the investment of gas fields in the eastern Mediterranean.
Colonna said that the agreement proves that “dialogue always bears fruit, and this message I carry is that the Lebanese authorities are able to jointly take the necessary decisions.”
She stressed that “the agreement certainly cannot replace the economic and financial reforms that remain necessary,” explaining that “the priority in this context is to implement the initial agreement concluded with the International Monetary Fund” as it is “the only option to provide the country with the support it needs.”
Meanwhile, Antonio Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations, welcomed the agreement to demarcate the maritime border between Lebanon and Israel, mediated by the United States.
In a statement distributed yesterday, Stephane Dujarric, Spokesperson for the Secretary-General of the United Nations, expressed the Secretary-General’s strong belief that this encouraging development can promote increased stability in the region and enhance prosperity for the Lebanese and Israeli peoples.
He affirmed the continued commitment of the United Nations to assist the parties, and its commitment to support the effective implementation of Security Council resolution 1701 (2006) and other relevant resolutions, which he noted remain essential to the stability of the region.
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