After a diplomatic tour in the Gulf, in which he closed important contracts for the French defense industry, President Emmanuel Macron on Saturday met the prince heir to the Saudi throne Mohammed Bin Salman. The visit was welcomed by many criticisms in France: Macron is the first Western leader to meet MBS after the murder, in Istanbul, of Saudi dissident and journalist Jamal Khashoggi who, according to CIA investigations and reports, was ordered by MBS himself .
Riyadh and the Gulf countries send Beirut ambassadors away and stop imports. In Lebanon the last standoff between Iran and Saudi Arabia
by Francesca Caferri
At the meeting in Riyadh, Macron and Bin Salman agreed on a joint plan to deal with the political and economic crisis in Lebanon, to help the population and resolve a diplomatic dispute between Beirut and the Gulf states. The day before, Lebanese Information Minister George Kordahi had resigned after his rant about Saudi responsibilities in the war in Yemen caused a diplomatic crisis, which prompted Riyadh to withdraw the ambassador and block imports from Lebanon. . Kordahi is a Christian, but belongs to one of the groups allied to the Shiite Hezbollah movement.
The leader of Hezbollah against Saudi Arabia, the crisis in Lebanon worsens
A very hard blow for Beiurt, whose economy is closely linked to that of Saudi Arabia. Macron told reporters that Riyadh has pledged to unblock imports shortly. The two leaders spoke with Lebanese Prime Minister NajibMikati, who called the call an “important step” in restoring relations with the Gulf states.
Despite having invested a lot of his political capital to try to resolve the Lebanese crisis, which exploded after the explosion at the port of Beirut on 4 August, so far the French president has failed to push the country’s quarrelsome politicians to carry out the economic reforms necessary to unlocking international aid which is vital for an exhausted population.
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