U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Wednesday called for the formation in Lebanon of a government that would carry out “significant reforms” and “real changes.”

“As for Lebanon, we’re certainly in close conversations with the French, we share the same objective. The objective is the same: business as usual in Lebanon just is unacceptable. I think (French) President (Emmanuel) Macron said the same thing,” said Pompeo at a press conference when asked about the French drive in Lebanon.

President Michel Aoun on Wednesday described French President Emmanuel Macron as a "true friend" of the Lebanese people.

Prime Minister-designate Mustafa Adib on Wednesday pledged to form a "government of experts" to spearhead reforms demanded by France and the rest of the international community as well as by the vast majority of the Lebanese people.

"We hope that we will quickly succeed in forming a government made up of a coherent team that is focused on dealing with the many dossiers before us," Adib said in a televised statement that followed non-binding consultations with the parliamentary blocs in Ain el-Tineh.

Lebanon's Bisri Valley lies on a green fertile bed, a spot that has cradled civilizations dating as far back as the Bronze Age. Its expansive lands of pine, citrus trees and ancient ruins are threatened with being submerged by a controversial mega dam funded by the World Bank.

For years, activists and locals have voiced their opposition to it, describing it as an environmental crime and a project that mirrors Lebanon's patronage system and bad governance.

Lebanese leaders began consultations on Wednesday to form a new crisis government, with the majority of parliamentary blocs expressing uncommon willingness to drop demands for government portfolios.

Pope Francis used a first public audience in six months Wednesday to warn that Lebanon faces "extreme danger that threatens the very existence of the country" following last month's massive explosion.

The leader of the Catholic Church focused on the disaster-hit country almost a month after the huge blast in the Beirut harbor ripped through the city, killing 190 people and wounding at least 6,500.

Prime minister designate Mustafa Adib was to kick off talks Wednesday on forming Lebanon's crisis government within two weeks to begin enacting desperately needed reforms in the disaster-hit country.

Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs David Schenker said in remarks to Saudi Asharq el-Awsat newspaper on Wednesday, that the United States and France are in “constant contact about Lebanon,” and are “very interested” in the Mediterranean country.

French President Emmanuel Macron said Lebanon's embattled leaders had pledged Tuesday to form a crisis cabinet within two weeks to push forward with key reforms, as he visited the disaster-hit country.

Macron was in Beirut for a second time since an August 4 explosion there which killed more than 180 people, laid waste to entire city districts and fueled popular rage against the country's political elite.

Protesters in Beirut Tuesday called for a "new Lebanon" without its reviled leaders, urging visiting French President Emmanuel Macron not to cooperate with them.

Clashes erupted in the evening between angry demonstrators and security forces, who responded with tear gas, while earlier in the afternoon, people demonstrating in the capital called for urgent change.