Saudi FM in Lebanon for first visit in almost 15 years: state media
AFP | Beirut
Email : editor@newsofbahrain.com
Saudi Arabia’s top diplomat landed in Beirut yesterday to meet the country’s new leadership in the first visit by a high-ranking official from the kingdom after more than a decade of strained ties.
“The Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Prince Faisal bin Farhan, arrived at Rafic Hariri International Airport,” Lebanon’s official National News Agency reported.
He is set to meet Lebanon’s newly elected President, former military chief Joseph Aoun -- whose candidacy is widely believed to have been backed by Riyadh and Western countries.
Prior to his visit, Prince Faisal called Aoun’s election “extremely positive”, but said the kingdom was waiting for concrete change before engaging further with Beirut.
“We will need to see real action. We will need to see real reform. We will need to see a commitment to a Lebanon that is looking to the future, not to the past, in order for us to raise our engagement,” he said.
His Lebanon visit aims to “inform the Kingdom’s approach” he said.
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