Lebanon’s financial crisis is most definitely set to be the focus of Prime Minister Hassan Diab and its newly formed government.
Newly-appointed Minister of Finance Ghazi Wazni is tasked with the heavy burden he just inherited from the last government.
MP Wazni told The Daily Star on January 23, 2020, that Lebanon will seek international aid in the form of loans between 4 and 5 billion US dollars (over the next year) in order to take the country out of the financial pit it currently stands in.
With the United States currently withholding support for Lebanon’s new Cabinet because it did not manage to isolate Hezbollah as requested, France has publically said it will do “everything” to help resolve Lebanon’s “deep crisis.”
The statement made by French President Emmanuel Macron on January 22, 2020, came as a sigh of relief amid Lebanon’s new government facing violent protest movements and rejection in the country’s capital.
In his statement, President Macron said: “We will do everything, during this deep crisis that they are going through, to help … our Lebanese friends,” boldly speaking alongside Israeli President Reuven Rivlin during a visit to Jerusalem.
The comments came as new Prime Minister Hassan Diab convened his first cabinet.
Donors hope that this cabinet can lead in the areas of reforms and anti-corruption policies, unlock foreign aid, and stabilize a weakening Lebanese currency.
While pledging support to France’s “Lebanese friends,” Macron also stressed that he would remain “vigilant” regarding any “terrorist activity” from Lebanon that could threaten either the Lebanese people or its southern neighbor Israel, according to a report by Naharnet.
Lebanon is technically still at war with Israel.
Violence currently still erupts throughout Beirut almost every day, with the general public still dissatisfied and in disbelief of the new Cabinet’s “reformed” image – and resorting to violence to get their point across.
Lebanon’s revolution has since deviated from its spirited and peaceful nature into violence and rage. Here’s to hoping once more, that this government pleasantly surprises us.
