Busy diplomat Macron gets stuck into Lebanon crisis
PARIS: From global warming to Iran’s nuclear deal, France’s Emmanuel Macron has already intervened in a series of diplomatic quagmires— and now finds himself pursuing an active role in Lebanon’s crisis.
He and his ministers have held a the turmoil, with Macron jetting to
He said France had a role to play in bringing peace to a region suffering soaring tensions between Saudi Arabia and Iran, which are
- ments, France is pushing for Lebanese Premier Saad Hariri to return in Saudi Arabia on November 4 and rumors he is being held there against his will.
“France is acting so that all Lebanon commit to the situation possible,” Prime Minister Edouard Philippe said Tuesday.
Hariri himself has sought to downplay the situation, tweeting: “Guys, I will return in the coming days.”
But Lebanon’s Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil, who met with Macron on Tuesday, told a press conference in Paris: “The only thing that will prove he is free to return, is his return.”
Lebanon is caught between Sunni giant Saudi Arabia and the powerful Shiite movement Hezbollah, close to Riyadh’s arch-rival Iran— which Hariri has accused of controlling his country.
Strong relationships
France had mandate power over both Lebanon and Syria during the first half of the 20th century.
Though the room for maneuver is tight, Paris has been using strong regional relationships to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman receiving French President Emmanuel Macron in the capital Riyadh last week. push for Hariri’s return.
French Foreign Minister Jean
“What gives us our power— including in comparison with the United States— is that we Bauchard, Middle East expert at the French Institute of International Relations ( IFRI).
“France has a special relationship in Lebanon with the three (religious) communities, including contact with the Shiites,” he said.
He added that France enjoys “historically good relations with Saudi Arabia,” even if Paris has seen hopes for lucrative arms deals dashed.
French ties with Tehran have also warmed since the 2015 nuclear deal, he noted.
The Lebanese crisis is not the in May in which the young French president has sought an active role in a tense diplomatic situation.
He has repeatedly said he wants - lapsing despite opposition from
He has also refused to invite Trump to a Paris climate summit next month following Washington’s withdrawal from the historic international pact
And he organized a meeting between Libya’s rival leaders in Paris in July at which they agreed a for next year.
Damage limitation
Macron’s apparent desire to place France at the heart of international diplomacy coincides with “a worrying American policy, Britain being eclipsed by Brexit, and a certain withdrawal by Germany due to internal politics,” said Bauchard.
But Stephane Malsagne, a Lebanon specialist at Paris’s Sciences-Po university, said France was a relative “lightweight in the Lebanese political game, which is essentially driven today by Tehran and Riyadh.”
Paris has “lost a lot of ground” as a weapons supplier to the Saudis and Riyadh for the anti-jihadist military force that it is spearheading in Africa’s Sahel, he said.
France’s relationships in the region mean it can help to smooth tensions and limit the damage from the latest SaudiIranian power struggle, said Ziad Majed of the American University of Paris. and avoid the worst, it’s much more up to Washington,” said the FrenchLebanese political analyst.