Lebanon’s President Joseph Aoun became the country’s first head of state to visit Riyadh in six years, where he met Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh.
The visit, which will help thaw relations between the two countries, also looks at restoring trade ties and reconstruction efforts in the country.
This will also reactivate a $3 billion package for the Lebanese army, Aoun said last week.
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The visit is an “opportunity to emphasize the depth of Lebanese-Saudi relations and also an occasion to express Lebanon’s appreciation for the role played by the kingdom in supporting Lebanon’s stability, safety, and the regularity of the work of its constitutional institutions,” news agency AP reported Aoun as saying.
Aoun’s visit comes after Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan’s traveled to Beirut.
Filling a power vacuum
Aoun, a former army chief, was elected on January 9, ending a more than two-year power vacuum following a crippling political and economic crisis. He is seen as close to Riyadh and Washington.
His election was made possible by the weakening of militant group Hezbollah during a war with Israel.
As relations between Lenanon and Saudi Arabia slowly thaw, Lebanon hopes that Saudi Arabia will lift the travel ban on the cash-strapped country, restore trade and help its reconstruction efforts after the war between Hezbollah and Israel left southern and eastern Lebanon in ruins.
Ties between Lebanon and Saudi Arabia had been strained for years. In 2016, Riyadh halted $3 billion in military aid to the Lebanese army, citing the political influence of Hezbollah.
The president added that he chose Saudi Arabia as his first destination because of its “historic links” with Lebanon and its role as a regional and global player.
“I hope and expect that Saudi Arabia will help us reset relations in the interest of both countries and overcome recent obstacles,” he said.
