Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud has visited Lebanon today, the first visit by the top Saudi diplomat to Beirut in 15 years.
The visit is seeking a pledge of reform as Riyadh seeks to shore up its influence.
The visit by Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al-Saud reflects seismic political shifts in Lebanon since Israel pummelled the Iran-backed Hezbollah in last year’s war, and since Hezbollah’s Syrian ally Bashar al-Assad was toppled by rebels in December.
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The lebanese president Joseph Aoun and prime minister Nawaf Salam who both took office this meet Prince Faisal marking a new phase for a country that has been mired in financial crisis since 2019 and is now facing a reconstruction bill of billions of dollars.
Recalled when prince Faisal was speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos on Tuesday, said Saudi Arabia regarded the election of a Lebanese president after a vacuum of more than two years as extremely positive.
He expressed hope that a new Lebanese government would be formed “in the not too distant future”.
The foreign minister then urged for the need of collaboration to build a positive relationship and developments especially with the need to work together for rebuilding Syria.
“I assured him (the president) of the Kingdom’s continued support for the brotherly Lebanese people,” he said.
The necessity of adhering to Resolution 1701 and the necessity of the withdrawal of the Israeli army from Lebanon were emphasized.