Lebanon’s economy and basic services have reached ‘precipice of collapse,’ warns US envoy
Lebanon’s economy and basic services have reached the “precipice of collapse,” US Ambassador Dorothy Shea warned on Monday, as President Michel Aoun and Prime Minister-designate Najib Mikati engaged in dialogue to reach an acceptable formula for a new government.
Speaking after her meetings with Aoun and Mikati, the ambassador said the Lebanese were suffering and that every day without an “empowered government committed to and able to implement urgently needed reforms” was a day in which the already dire situation slid further into humanitarian catastrophe.
“We urge those who continue to block government formation and reform to put aside partisan interests,” she added.
The US welcomed the EU’s new sanctions framework to promote accountability and reform in Lebanon, with the ambassador also saying her country would “continue to coordinate” with its partners on appropriate measures.
“Lebanon needs its leaders to take urgent rescue actions, and that can’t happen without an empowered, rescue-focused government that begins to address the needs of the people and begins the hard work of economic recovery.”
On Monday, information spread about French and US pressure on all parties in Lebanon to form a government.
The exchange rate dropped at the beginning of the week to LBP18,500 to the dollar despite the ongoing crises.
Consultations to form a government appear to have reached the stage of choosing ministers after an agreement to distribute portfolios to sects and political parties.
An agreement was reached last week between Aoun and Mikati to keep the sovereign portfolios in line with their previous distribution, with the Ministry of Finance going to the Shiites, the Ministry of Interior going to the Sunnis, and the Ministry of Justice going to the Maronites.
But Future Bloc MP Mohammed Al-Hajjar tempered the prevailing optimism.
“We will see how things play out at the end,” he told Arab News.
“There is internal and external pressure on Aoun to facilitate the formation of the government.”
He expressed concern about Aoun’s attempt to “absorb these pressures by spreading an atmosphere of optimism and then going back on his promises.”
On Monday, Aoun responded to political and popular demands for him to step down by stating that he would not resign.
He said he would carry out his duties until the end and that the president of the republic — “despite the powers that he had lost” — was a partner in the formation process with the prime minister-designate. The president had the right to choose from among the suggested names “in light of his moral authority.”
Lebanon needs its leaders to take urgent rescue actions, and that can’t happen without an empowered, rescuefocused government.