Report: Efforts Underway to Hold Hariri-Obama Meeting in Washington

Head of the Mustaqbal Movement MP Saad Hariri's ongoing visit to the United States is focusing on safeguarding Lebanon from regional unrest and raising support for its army and security forces, reported the Kuwaiti daily al-Anba on Sunday.

It added that efforts are underway to schedule a meeting between the former premier and U.S. President Barack Obama.

The two officials had last met in Washington in 2011.

The Mustaqbal Movement kicked off his trip to the U.S. on Wednesday.

He has so far held talks with Vice President Joe Biden, Secretary of State John Kerry, National Security Adviser Susan Rice, and the Deputy Secretary of Defense Christine Wormuth.

According to a statement issued by Hariri's press office, his meeting with Rice focused on the situation in Lebanon and the latest developments in the region, particularly in the Syria, Iraq and Yemen.

Lebanon's allies are seeking to bolster the country's defenses against the Islamic State group and other jihadists pressing along its Syrian border.

M.T.