Well-informed political sources said that it was early to judge the appointment of Dr. Mustafa Adib to form the new Lebanese government.
It is important to wait until the cabinet’s formation, according to the sources, who also emphasized the need to listen to the reactions of Arab and foreign countries to determine the extent of their readiness to provide the new government with the necessary support.
The sources also asked whether Adib’s name was put forward by French President Emmanuel Macron, who has personally followed up on securing the political agreement over the Sunni diplomat, before landing in Beirut on his second official visit on Monday evening.
According to the same sources, Adib’s appointment came two days before the expected visit of US Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs David Schenker to Lebanon on Wednesday.
The political sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that in light of the near-consensus over the new prime minister, they were waiting to see whether the birth of the government would take place quickly - within a week - or would be subjected to extortion due to the usual dispute over the distribution of ministerial portfolios.
The majority of parliamentary blocs, who nominated Adib, called for the formation of a government of specialists who could meet the major challenges facing the country, mainly the reconstruction of Beirut and stopping the financial and economic collapse.
The sources said that the deputies would undergo “a test of intentions” as soon as the case of forming the government is opened, to know whether their nomination of Adib was a based on their own conviction or a consent to Macron’s desire.
The political sources also considered that the coincidence between Macron’s visit to Beirut and the arrival of Schenker would be an indicator to test the convergence of views between Paris and Washington.
A former prime minister told Asharq Al-Awsat that Adib would refuse to form a technocrat government that would be a copy of its predecessor, but would select specialists who have an experience in the public and private fields.
Therefore, the sources underlined that first task of the new government was to stop the financial and economic collapse and to prepare a reform program, with the priority to rebuild Beirut and guarantee the success of negotiations with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to obtain the necessary financial aid for the recovery plan.
