The Saudi Arabian authorities are considering the possibility of severing diplomatic relations with Lebanon after controversial comments by a Lebanese minister, an informed Arab diplomatic source told Sputnik
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 29th October, 2021) The Saudi Arabian authorities are considering the possibility of severing diplomatic relations with Lebanon after controversial comments by a Lebanese minister, an informed Arab diplomatic source told Sputnik.
"Riyadh is considering severing diplomatic relations with Lebanon. There is a likelihood of recalling the Saudi Arabian ambassador from Lebanon in the near future," the source said.
Earlier in the Lebanese media published excerpts from Lebanese Information Ministry George Kordahi's interview to Al-Jazeera, in which he stated that the actions of the Arab coalition led by Saudi Arabia in Yemen were aggression, the rebels from the Ansar Allah (Houthis) group were forced to defend themselves, and the war in Yemen was generally pointless. He later noted that these words were said in an interview in August, before his appointment as minister. He also said that he did not want to offend Saudi Arabia and the UAE. Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati said that Kordahi's words did not reflect the official position of Lebanon on the Yemeni issue.
The foreign ministries of the Gulf countries summoned the ambassadors of Lebanon and handed them notes of protest. The Lebanese government and the country's president, Michel Aoun, reiterated that what Kordahi said in August did not in any way correspond to the official position of Beirut.
