France’s Macron to visit Lebanon after appointment of new President and Prime Minister

French leader's trip comes as Lebanon is going through a 'historic moment’, his office says

President Emmanuel Macron's visit will 'underline France's unwavering commitment to supporting Lebanon', his office said. AP

French President Emmanuel Macron will travel to Lebanon on Friday more than a week after Lebanon's Parliament elected army chief Joseph Aoun as head of state.

Mr Macron will be calling on Lebanese political parties to form a government quickly, after MPs on Monday chose former president of the International Court of Justice, Nawaf Salam, as the new Prime Minister.

"With this visit, the head of state wishes to underline France's unwavering commitment to supporting Lebanon, its sovereignty and its unity," a statement from the French presidency read.

Mr Salam and Mr Aoun are being looked upon as beacons of hope who can deliver real change after Lebanon's succession of crises. In his maiden speech on Tuesday, Mr Salam called for a new chapter in the country "rooted in justice, security, progress and opportunities".

But Lebanon's sectarian politics are notoriously slow and it may take months for Mr Salam to form a cabinet. The country had been without a president for more than two years until Mr Aoun's appointment.

In what the French presidency described as a "historic moment", the new Lebanese cabinet will have "to carry out essential reforms for the recovery of the country, to allow the return of prosperity for all Lebanese women and men, as well as the restoration of security and sovereignty of Lebanon throughout its territory".

During his visit, Mr Macron will work on the "full implementation" of the US-France brokered November 26 ceasefire between Hezbollah and Israel, after a war which killed more than 3,100 Lebanese, mostly civilians.

Mr Macron's last visit to Lebanon was in 2020, after a devastating blast tore through Beirut's port in August, killing more than 218 people, amid the country's worst financial collapse.

Despite visiting Lebanon again that year, Mr Macron failed to convince Lebanese politicians to implement economic and political reform. But recent upheavals, including Israel's war with Hezbollah and the end of the Assad regime in neighbouring Syria, which had long held sway over Lebanese politics, appear to have triggered a shift in power in Lebanon.

France, a former colonial power in Lebanon, has maintained close ties with the country and is the only western nation that meets at high level with Hezbollah politicians. Mr Macron's special envoy for Lebanon, former defence minister Jean-Yves Le Drian, attended the parliamentary session in Beirut in person, in which Mr Aoun was announced as president.

"This trip reflects France's constant commitment to the stability, unity and development of Lebanon, a historic partner and friend of France," the President's office added.