France criticises Lebanon’s failure to form government

PARIS: President Emmanuel Macron was to try to revive a French initiative on Lebanon when he hosts an international aid conference on Wednesday evening, but with the country’s fractious political class bickering, hopes of a breakthrough appear slim.

“To borrow or lend money you need trust and trust isn’t there,” a French presidential official told reporters in a briefing. “We will stay like this as long as there is no credible government in place.” Co-hosted with the United Nations, several heads of state and governments will atend the video conference.

Macron is due to visit French troops operating as part of a UN peacekeeping mission in Lebanon around Dec.20, diplomats said. Having seen deadlines to form a government pass and political talks stall, Macron opted to go ahead with an aid conference to take stock of the situation.

However, officials have made it clear that Lebanon will not be bailed out without structural reforms, a full audit of the central bank and that any immediate aid will only be to help recovery and be distributed directly to the population.

“Lebanon will not escape this type of audit if it wants serious negotiations with the International Monetary Fund. It is indispensable otherwise it’s bankruptcy,” the official said.

A similar conference in August raised nearly 253 million euros ($298 million) in pledges. The official said Wednesday’s conference should raise a bit more.

“When there’s no Plan B, France always organises a conference,” said a Western diplomat, adding that the Lebanon situation was unlikely to evolve before a new US administration was firmly in place.

Separately, Lebanon’s President Michel Aoun said on Wednesday he wants maritime border talks with Israel to succeed and that disagreements during the last round of negotiations can be resolved based on international law.

Aoun spoke during a meeting with John Desrocher, the US mediator for the negotiations, who was in Beirut for discussions with Lebanese leaders.

The fourth round of talks, which was scheduled to take place Wednesday, was postponed until further notice, officials in the two countries said.

A statement released by Aoun’s office quoted him as telling Desrocher that Lebanon wants the talks to succeed because “this will strengthen stability in the south and allow us to invest in natural resources of oil and gas.” He said difficulties that surfaced during the last round can be solved through discussions based on the Law of the Sea. Aoun said if the talks stall then “other alternatives can be put forward,” without elaborating.