Fabius Expresses France's Staunch Support to Lebanon during Meeting with Salam

French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius informed Prime Minister Tammam Salam on Sunday that the first shipment of French weapons, part of a $3 billion Saudi deal, is expected to arrive in Lebanon in April.

Fabius's statement was made during a meeting with Salam on the sidelines of the 51st Munich Security Conference.

“France is keen to support Lebanon and safeguards its security, stability and unity and fortify its state institutions,” Fabius told the Lebanese PM.

Saudi Arabia last year announced it would give the Lebanese army $3 billion to purchase weapons and equipment from France, but that deal has yet to be fully implemented.

In August, the kingdom offered another $1 billion in funds to allow the army to purchase supplies immediately.

For his part, Salam expressed gratitude to Fabius on the efforts carried out by France to facilitate the election of a new president in Lebanon as the FM stressed that Paris “will continue its endeavors to reach a positive result in this regard.”

The two officials also tackled the Syrian refugees crisis.

U.N. refugee agency UNHCR has registered 1.5 million arrivals, but many more are thought to be in the country unregistered, and thousands have entered Lebanon through illegal crossings.

The influx has tested the country's limited resources, as well as the patience of its citizens, particularly as security has deteriorated.

Salam had also discussed on Saturday in Munich with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, Iranian FM Mohammad Javad Zarif and several other officials the latest developments in Lebanon and the region.

The PM held talks with Kurdistan President Massoud Barzani, Egypt's Foreign Minister Sameh Shukri, UAE FM Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed bin al-Nahyan, Iraqi premier Haider al-Abadi and Norway's FM Borge Brende.

The event's organizer, veteran German diplomat Wolfgang Ischinger, said the conference focuses what he called an unprecedented upsurge in global crises over the past year, and the inability of the international community to tackle them.

Salam stressed in his speech during the conference that the presence of refugees in a country of such fragile economic and political scenes as Lebanon is a “ticking time bomb”.

He said: “The large number of Syrian refugees in Lebanon has led to an increase in crime due to unemployment and poverty.”

The PM had kicked off his trip to Germany with talks with Bahraini Foreign Minister Khaled bin Ahmed al-Khalifa.