President Meets French Envoy

President Michel Aoun held a meeting at Baabda Palace on Thursday with French President Emmanuel Macron's advisor for North Africa and the Middle East, Patrick Durel, the Presidency said in a tweet.

The talks were held in the presence of French Ambassador to Lebanon, Anne Grillo, and focused on the bilateral relations between the two countries, on the French initiative towards Lebanon and the formation of a cabinet, it said.

French President Emmanuel “Macron is a great friend of Lebanon. We adhere to the French initiative for the benefit of the country,” Aoun told Durel.

Durel for his part said Lebanon should expedite efforts to form a new government welcomed by Lebanon’s conflicting political parties.

“To expedite the formation of an efficient government acceptable to all parties,” said Durel.

Local media reports said Durel's two-day visit aims to revive the French initiative towards Lebanon in light of the stalemate to form a government.

Macron, who visited Lebanon two days after the colossal August 4 explosion in Beirut, launched an initiative aimed at forming a mission government, capable of implementing reforms.

However, despite agreeing on Macron's plan during a meeting at the Pine Residence in Beirut, leaders of Lebanon's political parties have failed so far to ease PM-designate Saad Hariri's mission to form a cabinet.