French President Emmanuel Macron informed Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri that he would not visit Beirut at the official invitation of his Lebanese counterpart Michel Aoun before the government starts implementing reforms listed during the CEDRE conference that was held in Paris in 2018.
A diplomatic source told Asharq Al-Awsat that Macron gave Beirut until October 15 to inform the strategic committee about what the Lebanese government achieved during the past phase to improve the economy, including reforms to tackle the electricity sector.
Accordingly, Macron should decide on whether to set a date for visiting the country, or postpone it again.
In April, reports said that Lebanon received official notice from France that Macron is planning on visiting the country.
However, the visit never materialized.
Instead, Macron sent to Beirut this month his envoy in charge of following up on the decisions of the CEDRE conference.
Ambassador Pierre Dukan urged Lebanon to put an end to tax and customs evasion, as a necessary measure to stop state budget squandering, in addition to the implementation of the 2019 budget, the adoption of the 2020 budget within the constitutional deadlines, the reduction of spending and the implementation of the electricity plan.
France also believes that Lebanon should reform its judicial sector as a means to fight corruption.
