Maronite Patriarch Bechara Rai’s meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron helped revert France’s stance on Lebanon’s presidential election stalemate, namely regarding the endorsement of the candidate backed by the ‘Shiite duo’ to the detriment of leading Christian parties.
Kataeb MP Elias Hankash commented on the meeting, saying the French administration has “held back its bid having to do with imposing a presidential candidate who is rejected by a considerable portion of the Lebanese people.”
“The French are no longer holding on to Sleiman Frangieh’s candidature,” Hankash said to MTV news channel on Wednesday, adding that “the presidential post is not consecrated to Hezbollah, and they cannot impose a president.”
A communiqué issued by the Elysée following the meeting, which lasted for more than an hour on Tuesday, stated that Macron emphasized the “need to maintain Lebanon’s Christians at the core of sectarian and institutional balance of the Lebanese state.”
“Macron and Rai expressed deep concern about the crisis gripping Lebanon and the paralysis of state institutions, which has been aggravated by the seven-month-long presidential vacuum, and agreed on the need to elect a president without delay,” the communiqué added.
The candidature of Frangieh, leader of the pro-Syria Marada Party, is utterly rejected by leading Christian parties, including the Lebanese Forces (LF) and its rival the Free Patriotic Movement (FPM). The latter was until recently a staunch ally of Hezbollah.
Lately, communication between the rival groups has paved the way for an agreement to designate former Finance Minister and current Director of the Middle East and Central Asia Department at the International Monetary Fund Jihad Azour as a presidential hopeful representing the anti-Hezbollah camp.
However, a joint official announcement of Azour’s candidature is yet to be made.
MP Hankash played down concerns that the FPM might pull out from the agreement, stressing that “it is in their interest to agree with the opposition on a president who would have the courage to deal with controversial issues, notably Hezbollah’s weapons.”
The parliamentarian insinuated that prolonged negotiations are aimed at fine-tuning the political agenda of the aspired president, underlining that “what he would do with pending issues is more important than who he is.”
“The president should primarily restore Lebanon’s diplomatic relations with the international community, especially its ties with the Arab Gulf countries,” Hankash added.
