Visiting Saudi FM says 'greatly confident' in Aoun and Salam's ability to reform
Saudi Arabia’s top diplomat said on Thursday he believes crisis-hit Lebanon’s newly elected president and his prime-minister designate are capable of spearheading long-sought reforms.
"We are greatly confident in the ability of... the president and the prime minister to initiate reforms necessary to bolster Lebanon’s security, stability and unity," Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan said after meeting President Joseph Aoun in Baabda, during the first high-level Saudi visit in more than a decade.
"We stress the importance of boosting reforms in Lebanon in order to regain the confidence of the world countries in it and we are seriously working to preserve its sovereignty, security and stability," Bin Farhan added.
"We discussed the importance of abiding by the ceasefire, Israel's withdrawal from the south and the implementation of Resolution 1701, and the kingdom is optimistic regarding Lebanon," the minister said.
Reeling from years of economic collapse and a destructive Israel-Hezbollah war, Lebanese leaders have pinned hopes on wealthy Gulf states for desperately needed reconstruction funds.
Aoun's candidacy is widely believed to have been backed by Riyadh and Western countries.
Riyadh was a major investor in Lebanon but ties between the two countries have soured for roughly the past decade over the growing influence of the Iran-backed Hezbollah group.
With Hezbollah weakened after the war with Israel and the toppling of its ally, Syrian president Bashar al-Assad, Prince Faisal's visit comes at a time when Lebanon is seeking a fresh start.
Aoun, whose election ended more than two years without a president, named former International Court of Justice presiding judge Nawaf Salam as prime minister-designate.
He has been tasked with forming a government capable of boosting Lebanon's faltering economy and rebuilding areas devastated by war.
Earlier this month, Aoun said his first official overseas trip would be to Saudi Arabia, after de facto ruler Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman invited him to visit the kingdom.
In his first speech as president, Aoun said the state would have "a monopoly" on bearing weapons, in a country where Hezbollah was the only group to keep its arsenal following the 1975-1990 civil war.
Prior to his visit, Prince Faisal called Aoun's election "extremely positive", but said the kingdom was waiting for concrete change before engaging further with Beirut.
"We will need to see real action. We will need to see real reform. We will need to see a commitment to a Lebanon that is looking to the future, not to the past, in order for us to raise our engagement," he said.
His Lebanon visit aims to "inform the Kingdom's approach" he said.
In 2021, Gulf states including Saudi Arabia had recalled diplomats from Beirut over a Lebanese minister's criticism of the Saudi-led military intervention in Yemen.
Riyadh had also suspended fruit and vegetable imports from Lebanon in April that year, saying shipments were being used for drug smuggling and accusing Beirut of inaction.
Among other tensions, in 2016 Riyadh said it had halted a $3 billion program for military supplies to Lebanon in protest against Hezbollah.
Source: Agence France Presse, Naharnet
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