A few hours after Lebanon saw the designation of a new prime minister, French President Emmanuel Macron landed in Beirut on a mission to help Lebanon avoid a total political collapse.
On Tuesday morning, a day after visiting the iconic Fairouz in her home in Rabieh, Macron celebrated the centenary of the declaration of the State of Greater Lebanon by planting a cedar sapling in the natural cedar reserve in the village of Jaj.
Then, around 11:15 AM, he reached the French warship docked at the Port of Beirut, and inspected the blast-stricken Port from aboard the warship, a little less than a month after his first inspection of the Port after the explosion.
At Beirut Port, Macron later met with various figures, including UN representatives and civil society organizations, to which he affirmed that France will continue to support Lebanon.
He also met with Melhem Khalaf, the head of the Beirut Bar Association, who said on the occasion that Lebanon at this stage needs “a state of law.”
From the Port, the French President headed to Baabda Palace to meet his Lebanese counterpart, Michel Aoun, with whom he held a private meeting upon his arrival.
Macron reportedly informed Aoun of the possibility of holding an economic conference to support Lebanon soon, in which various Arab and foreign countries are expected to participate.
Reaffirming the necessity of the implementation of reforms in Lebanon, he also assured the Lebanese President that he can “count on France” for support.
Nonetheless, Macron delivered a stern warning to the Lebanese political leaders.
He informed them that if they fail to induce real change within 3 months, they will risk new sanctions from the international community.
With that said, the French Presidency announced later on Tuesday that Macron is set to return to Lebanon for a third visit in December.
