Saudi Ambassador, IMF Delegation Discuss Conditions for Lebanon’s Recovery

  Saudi Arabia’s ambassador to Lebanon Walid Al-Bukhari met with the visiting IMF delegation, headed by Ernesto Ramirez Rigo. (Markaziah Agency)
Saudi Arabia’s ambassador to Lebanon Walid Al-Bukhari met with the visiting IMF delegation, headed by Ernesto Ramirez Rigo. (Markaziah Agency)
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Saudi Ambassador, IMF Delegation Discuss Conditions for Lebanon’s Recovery

  Saudi Arabia’s ambassador to Lebanon Walid Al-Bukhari met with the visiting IMF delegation, headed by Ernesto Ramirez Rigo. (Markaziah Agency)
Saudi Arabia’s ambassador to Lebanon Walid Al-Bukhari met with the visiting IMF delegation, headed by Ernesto Ramirez Rigo. (Markaziah Agency)

Saudi Arabia’s ambassador to Beirut Walid Al-Bukhari discussed with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) delegation the necessary conditions for Lebanon's economic recovery.

Al-Bukhari met with the visiting IMF delegation, headed by Ernesto Ramirez Rigo, on Wednesday at his residence in Yarzeh, east of Beirut.

Talks during the meeting touched on the overall developments in Lebanon and the region, the conditions for recovery that the country needs to overcome its political and economic crisis, as well as other issues of common concern.

The delegation met earlier with the chairman of the Finance and Budget Committee in the Lebanese Parliament, MP Ibrahim Kanaan, and the head of the Administration and Justice Committee, MP George Adwan. Discussions focused on the financial and economic situation and the path towards the agreement with the IMF.

In comments following the meeting, Kanaan said: “The two sides agreed on the need to elect a president for the republic as a starting point for restructuring the institutions and producing a homogeneous government team that has a clear road map for financial and economic rescue and implementation of the required reforms.”

He continued: “It is not only related to passing laws to launch the agreement with the IMF, but, more importantly, the possibility of respecting and implementing them to restore local and international confidence, and thus investments.”

In this regard, Kanaan pointed to the need to adopt a different approach and a new monetary policy within the government and the Banque du Liban, stressing the importance of an independent judiciary that “exercises its role in the event of any discrepancy in government work and the Lebanese administration.”



GCC Welcomes Agreement between Yemen Govt, Houthis

Hans Grundberg, the U.N. special representative for Yemen, speaks during an interview with The Associated Press in Cairo, Egypt, on Aug. 28, 2023. (AP)
Hans Grundberg, the U.N. special representative for Yemen, speaks during an interview with The Associated Press in Cairo, Egypt, on Aug. 28, 2023. (AP)
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GCC Welcomes Agreement between Yemen Govt, Houthis

Hans Grundberg, the U.N. special representative for Yemen, speaks during an interview with The Associated Press in Cairo, Egypt, on Aug. 28, 2023. (AP)
Hans Grundberg, the U.N. special representative for Yemen, speaks during an interview with The Associated Press in Cairo, Egypt, on Aug. 28, 2023. (AP)

Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Secretary-General Jasem Mohamed Albudaiwi welcomed on Wednesday the agreement between the legitimate Yemeni government and Iran-backed Houthi militias to de-escalate the situation with regard to the Yemeni banking sector and airlines.

The agreement was announced by the United Nations Secretary-General's Special Envoy to Yemen, Hans Grundberg, on Tuesday.

Albudaiwi expressed the GCC's support for all regional and international efforts and the efforts led by the UN special envoy aimed at achieving peace and security in Yemen.

The announcement underscores the importance the international community attaches to the Yemeni crisis, he added, hoping the agreement will pave the way for Yemeni parties to start the political process, under UN auspices, to reach a comprehensive political solution that achieves security and stability in the country.

He reiterated the GCC's continued support and full solidarity with Yemen, its government and people, and its keenness to encourage all efforts to de-escalate and maintain stability in order to reach peace.