[ad_1]
The French presidency said today, Wednesday, that the US sanctions against the political class in Lebanon have not borne fruit, and stressed that measures according to the Lebanon Road Map will not yet be implemented, before the holding of a conference of aid sponsored by President Emmanuel Macron and the United Nations, in Paris.
He expressed his belief that these sanctions will not lead to the formation of the Lebanese government.
Differences between Lebanese political forces continue to prevent the birth of the new government, despite the fact that more than 40 days have passed since Saad Hariri was assigned to form it.
This occurs despite the commitment of all parties to facilitate the formation of a technocratic government, whose mission is to carry out comprehensive economic, financial and administrative reforms in the country.
According to the French presidency, no measures have been implemented in accordance with the proposed French roadmap to help Lebanon resolve a major political and economic crisis, and no progress has been made in auditing the accounts of the Central Bank of Lebanon.
A French presidential official said, before an aid conference, that world powers will continue to pressure the political class in Lebanon, but is not convinced that the US sanctions will have any effect in helping to form a credible government. capable of implementing reforms that would provide international financial assistance.
Hariri (right) is tasked with forming the Lebanese government (Anatolia)Conference and help
It comes as a conference is being held in Paris today to help the Lebanese people cope with their economic crisis, 4 months after the devastating explosion in the port of Beirut.
The conference will be chaired by the French President, accompanied by the Secretary General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres.
France has previously mentioned that the only alternative to avoid the collapse of Lebanon is to adhere to the roadmap approved in early September.
Heads of State, international organizations, multilateral donors, non-governmental organizations and representatives of Lebanese civil society were invited to participate in this conference, which will be administered from the Elysee Palace starting at 18:30 (17:30 GMT) according to confirmed the French presidency.
The French presidency said that the conference “aims to evaluate the aid provided by the international community, assess the arrangements for its distribution since the August 9 conference, and seek new needs and work to meet them, in the context of the crisis that faces Lebanon. “
The August 9 conference, which was organized in an emergency manner only 5 days after the explosion, allowed the mobilization of 250 million euros in aid to Lebanon.
Macron continued to hold the new conference despite the failure of the Lebanese political class to fulfill its commitments to form a new government of independent specialists, in order to launch the structural reforms demanded by the international community in exchange for long-term support to the Lebanon.
The port explosion aggravated the crisis in Lebanon (European)A crisis that worsens
In recent months, the economic crisis in Lebanon has intensified, what the World Bank described as a “deliberate depression” in a report released on Tuesday, denouncing the “lack of political consensus around national priorities” that ” It seriously hampers Lebanon’s ability to implement long-term insightful development policies. “
The World Bank suggested that the real GDP growth rate fell sharply to -19.2% in 2020, saying that the collapse of the currency led to “inflation rates exceeding the 100% limit.”
In addition to an unprecedented drop in the value of the Lebanese currency and inflation, political forces are still unable, due to divisions and disagreements over quotas, to form a government 3 months after the resignation of Acting Prime Minister Hassan Diab, despite international pressure led by France.
Following the disaster of the port explosion, Macron visited Lebanon twice, on August 6 and then on September 1, when he announced that he had obtained from local political forces a commitment to form a government of independents in 15 days, but the commitment was not fulfilled.
He tasked former prime minister Saad Hariri on Oct. 22 to form a new government, but his efforts so far have not borne fruit due to internal divisions.
[ad_2]
