عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
Arab World

Lebanon’s Cabinet Formation Drags

Geagea met with Hariri on Wednesday night/NNA
Geagea met with Hariri on Wednesday night/NNA
TT
TT

Lebanon’s Cabinet Formation Drags

Geagea met with Hariri on Wednesday night/NNA
Geagea met with Hariri on Wednesday night/NNA

A new round of talks kicked off by Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri to remove obstacles hindering the formation of his new government failed to come up with positive outcomes in the first hours after launching the consultations.

A meeting that Hariri held with Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea on Wednesday, and expected talks between him and the head of the Progressive Socialist Party, Walid Jubmlat, do not imply that the PM can present a draft line-up to President Michel Aoun anytime soon.

Both the PSP and the LF are holding onto their demands for specific shares in the cabinet while the head of the Free Patriotic Movement, caretaker Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil, refuses to offer any concessions to break the deadlock.

Furthermore, Bassil is exerting additional political pressure on Hariri by proposing a time limit for government formation and even hinting onto the PM-designate giving up his task if he fails to overcome the obstacles.

Sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that talks between Hariri and Geagea tackled the political and economic threats to the government formation rather than mulling new ideas on ending the current stalemate.

“No tangible progress would been seen with regard to the government formation as long as those obstructing it insist on minimizing the role of the LF and the PSP,” head of LF communications and media department Charles Jabbour told Asharq Al-Awsat on Thursday.

Jabbour explained that the main obstacle is Bassil.

With regard to the study presented by caretaker Justice Minister Salim Jreissati to force Hariri to abide by a deadline in his cabinet formation efforts, sources close to the PM-designate said no one other than Hariri would be able to form the government.

The deadlock revolves mainly around demands made by Jumblat’s PSP and the LF, which have been dubbed as the problems of the Druze and Christian representation in the new government. 

Hariri has limited choices with regards to the LF representation. President Michel Aoun is holding onto the positions of the deputy prime minister and the defense ministry, while his son-in-law Bassil has rejected to give the LF a cabinet seat from the FPM’s share.

As for the Druze representation, Jumblat is asking for all three cabinet seats designated for his sect, while the FPM wants to grant its ally Druze MP Talal Arslan a share in the government.

Most Viewed

 
 
Arab World

Italy Plans to Return Ambassador to Syria to Reflect New Diplomatic Developments, Minister Says

Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani speaks while meeting with members of the G7, on July 11, 2024, during the NATO summit in Washington. (AP)
Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani speaks while meeting with members of the G7, on July 11, 2024, during the NATO summit in Washington. (AP)
TT
TT

Italy Plans to Return Ambassador to Syria to Reflect New Diplomatic Developments, Minister Says

Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani speaks while meeting with members of the G7, on July 11, 2024, during the NATO summit in Washington. (AP)
Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani speaks while meeting with members of the G7, on July 11, 2024, during the NATO summit in Washington. (AP)

Italy plans to send an ambassador back to Syria after a decade-long absence, the country’s foreign minister said, in a diplomatic move that could spark divisions among European Union allies.

Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, speaking in front of relevant parliamentary committees Thursday, announced Rome’s intention to re-establish diplomatic ties with Syria to prevent Russia from monopolizing diplomatic efforts in the Middle Eastern country.

Moscow is considered a key supporter of Syrian President Bashar Assad, who has remained in power despite widespread Western isolation and civilian casualties since the start of Syria’s civil war in March 2011.

Peaceful protests against the Assad government — part of the so-called “Arab Spring” popular uprisings that spread across some of the Middle East — were met by a brutal crackdown, and the uprising quickly spiraled into a full-blown civil war.

The conflict was further complicated by the intervention of foreign forces on all sides and a rising militancy, first by al-Qaida-linked groups and then the ISIS group until its defeat on the battlefield in 2019.

The war, which has killed nearly half a million people and displaced half the country’s pre-war population of 23 million, is now largely frozen, despite ongoing low-level fighting.

The country is effectively carved up into areas controlled by the Damascus-based government of Assad, various opposition groups and Syrian Kurdish forces.

In the early days of the conflict, many Western and Arab countries cut off relations with Syria, including Italy, which has since managed Syria-related diplomacy through its embassy in Beirut.

However, since Assad has regained control over most of the territory, neighboring Arab countries have gradually restored relations, with the most symbolically significant move coming last year when Syria was re-admitted to the Arab League.

Tajani said Thursday the EU’s policy in Syria should be adapted to the “development of the situation,” adding that Italy has received support from Austria, Croatia, Greece, the Czech Republic, Slovenia, Cyprus and Slovakia.

However, the US and allied countries in Europe have largely continued to hold firm in their stance against Assad’s government, due to concerns over human rights violations.