MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 12th February, 2021) No progress has been made toward the formation of the new government in Lebanon so far, Prime Minister Saad Hariri said on Friday and called for accelerating the process while there was still a "golden opportunity" for it.
Over the recent period, Hariri reportedly paid visits to several countries, including Egypt, Turkey, and France, as part of the efforts to revive Beirut's ties with friendly countries, while Lebanon has been witnessing a long-term political deadlock.
"Efforts are continuing to rescue Lebanon and put an end to the [situation's] deterioration, there is no progress in the formation of the government. I explained to the president that we have a golden opportunity, and that we must accelerate the formation of the government. Each [political] party, henceforward, should take responsibility for its position," Hariri said, as quoted by state news agency NNA, following his meeting with President Michel Aoun at the Baabda palace.
The prime minister, in turn, has not specified what such opportunity entails.
"I still have a stance that the government should consist of 18 members, and there will not be a disrupting one-third [of ministers]. I wanted to tell His Excellency President that the objective of foreign trips was the restoration of ties with countries that we have been in distance with for long," Hariri added.
Hariri resigned from the post of prime minister in January 2020 following a wave of protests sparked by the poor economic situation. The next premier, Hassan Diab, failed to improve the economic situation aggravated by the huge blast in the Beirut port on August 4, and submitted a resignation following the disaster. In late October, Hariri was given a new chance to form the government but no compromise on the issue has been reached so far.
Earlier in the week, Elie Ferzli, the deputy speaker at the Lebanese parliament, told Sputnik that he was optimistic in regard to the prospects that a new cabinet would be formed soon. The lawmaker shared his expectations that the crisis that gripped Lebanon would see a change for the better this month and in early March.
