Hariri to Meet Hollande in Riyadh to End Presidential Standoff
Mustaqbal Movement leader and ex-Prime Minister Saad Hariri is expected to meet with French President Francois Hollande in Saudi Arabia.
The meeting will be held in Riyadh on the sidelines of Hollande's visit to Riyadh to attend the Gulf Cooperation summit on Tuesday, the pan-Arab daily al-Hayat reported on Sunday.
Hollande is the first Western leader to do so since the bloc's creation in 1981. They will gather just over a week before the Gulf leaders travel to traditional ally Washington. President Barack Obama called that meeting in a bid to allay their fears over any U.S. rapprochement with Iran, and to brainstorm on reducing regional conflicts.
Talks between Hariri and Hollande are expected to focus on the ongoing presidential vacuum in Lebanon. They come a week after the French president held similar talks with Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi at the Elysee Palace in Paris.
Lebanon has been without a president since May 2014 when the term of Michel Suleiman ended without the election of a successor.
Ongoing disputes between the rival March 8 and 14 camps over a compromise candidate have thwarted the election.
Hizbullah's Loyalty to the Resistance and MP Michel Aoun's Change and Reform blocs have been boycotting the polls over the dispute.
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