EU Ambassador Discusses Presidential Void with Aoun
The Head of the Delegation of the European Union to Lebanon, Ambassador Christina Lassen, held talks Friday in Rabieh with the head of the Change and Reform bloc MP Michel Aoun.
“Discussions focused on the political situation in the country, particularly the on-going efforts to elect a president,” Lassen's office said.
Lassen stated after the meeting: "The presidential vacuum in Lebanon has now lasted almost two and half years. The EU has repeatedly called on the Lebanese political forces and stakeholders to put partisan and individual interests aside and find a viable compromise to elect a president."
Al-Mustaqbal Movement leader ex-PM Saad Hariri's recent return to Lebanon has triggered a flurry of reports about a possible presidential settlement and it has become known that the former premier is exploring the possibility of endorsing Aoun for the presidency in a bid to break the deadlock.
Lebanon has been without a president since the term of Michel Suleiman ended in May 2014 and Hizbullah, Aoun's bloc and some of their allies have been boycotting the parliament's electoral sessions, stripping them of the needed quorum.
Hariri, who is close to Saudi Arabia, launched an initiative in late 2015 to nominate Marada Movement chief MP Suleiman Franjieh for the presidency but his proposal was met with reservations from the country's main Christian parties as well as Hizbullah.
The supporters of Aoun's presidential bid argue that he is more eligible than Franjieh to become president due to the size of his parliamentary bloc and his bigger influence in the Christian community.
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