January 14, 2025Reuters
Paris (Reuters) -French President Emmanuel Macron will make an official visit to Lebanon on Friday, the Elysée announced on Tuesday, a trip that comes following last week’s election of army commander-in-chief General Joseph Aoun, to the Lebanese presidency.
Emmanuel Macron thus wants to “mark France’s unfailing commitment” in support of Lebanon, which is experiencing a “historic moment”, declared the French presidency in a press release.
The election of Joseph Aoun, who enjoys the support of much of the international community, ended a more than two-year vacancy in the Lebanese presidency – since Michel Aoun’s term ended in October 2022.
In its press release, the Elysée stressed that Emmanuel Macron’s trip would also make it possible to “work towards the full implementation” of the ceasefire agreement in Lebanon announced last November by the French president and his American counterpart Joe Biden, whose term in the White House will formally end next Monday.
Paris says it wants the formation “as soon as possible” of a Lebanese government capable of “bringing together” and “carrying out the reforms essential to the recovery of the country (…) as well as the restoration of security and sovereignty of Lebanon on its territory”.
-In parallel with the siege of the Gaza Strip decided in response to the attack by Palestinian Hamas on October 7, 2023, Israel began a military campaign in Lebanon last September, saying it wanted to eradicate Hezbollah.
During his first speech following the vote of Lebanese deputies last Thursday, Joseph Aoun alluded to the disarmament of Hezbollah, declaring that he wanted the Lebanese army, which would stay away from the clashes between the Tsahal and the movement aligned with Iran, has a “monopoly on carrying arms”.
Israel and Hezbollah accuse each other of ceasefire violations in Lebanon, in what constitutes an unprecedented conflict since their war in 2006.
(Written by Jean Terzian, edited by Sophie Louet)
