The Secretary-General of the Gulf Cooperation Council, Nayef Falah Mubarak Al-Hajraf, Minister of Foreign Affairs in the caretaker government of the Lebanese Republic, Charbel Wahba, called for an official apology to the GCC states "in exchange for the wrongdoing that was totally unacceptable," while Saudi Arabia and the UAE protested against the statements of the Lebanese official.
Al-Hajraf expressed - in a statement - that the GCC states rejected and denounced what was stated by the Lebanese minister, during a television interview, and the disgraceful insults against the Gulf Cooperation Council states and their peoples, as well as the insult of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
The Secretary-General of the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf also believed that the statements "contradict the most basic diplomatic norms," calling on the minister to "submit a formal apology to the Gulf Cooperation Council states and their peoples for the absolutely unacceptable offenses that occurred."
Charbel held - in a television interview on Monday - the Gulf countries responsible for the emergence of ISIS in Iraq and Syria.
On Tuesday, the Saudi authorities handed Lebanon's ambassador to Riyadh a protest note, after summoning him to denounce the statements of the Lebanese Foreign Minister.
Offensive remarks
Charbel Wahba - who is close to the President of the Republic, Michel Aoun, an ally of Hezbollah - re-tensions with the Gulf, as he linked Saudi Arabia and the Islamic State, and named a Saudi guest during a television interview "Al-Badawi."
In the midst of a live debate with a Saudi guest, he said, "The ISIS people who brought them to us came from the countries of people of love, friendship and brotherhood," so the announcer interrupted him and asked, "Are you talking about the Gulf countries?"
He replied, "I do not want to be named, the countries of love have brought us the Islamic State."
He also told the guest - who accused President Aoun of "handing over" Lebanon to Hezbollah - "Whoever killed Khashoggi in Istanbul? The one who killed Khashoggi in Istanbul should not speak in this way." Then he added as he left the studio, "I will not accept, while I am in Lebanon, that someone insults me. Bedouins. "
The Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs considered - in a statement - that the minister "insults the Kingdom and its people," expressing its "strong condemnation and denunciation of the shameful insults contained in these statements towards the Kingdom, its people and the sisterly Gulf Cooperation Council countries."
And she continued, "Given the repercussions that these disgraceful statements may have on the relations between the two brotherly countries, the Ministry summoned His Excellency the Ambassador of the Lebanese Republic to the Kingdom to express the kingdom's rejection and denunciation of the offenses issued by the Lebanese Foreign Minister, and he was handed an official protest note in this regard.
The official Emirates News Agency (WAM) stated that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs summoned the Lebanese ambassador and handed him an official protest note against the statements of the Lebanese Foreign Minister, which confirmed that they "contradict diplomatic norms."
"The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation expressed its strong condemnation and disapproval of the disgraceful and racist statements made by His Excellency Charbel Wehbe, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Lebanese Republic in the caretaker government, which offended the sisterly Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Gulf Cooperation Council countries," the agency said.
The minister apologizes
Later, Wahba issued a statement apologizing for "some inappropriate expressions," saying that "the intention was not (...) to offend any of the brotherly Arab states or peoples."
The Lebanese Presidency also said in a statement that what was issued by the Minister of Foreign Affairs "expresses his personal opinion and does not reflect the position of the state and President Aoun."
Meanwhile, caretaker Prime Minister Hassan Diab stressed his "keenness on the best relations with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Gulf states."
For his part, Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri said that Wahba's words during the interview "do not have any connection with the diplomatic work, and it constitutes a round of absurdity and recklessness in foreign policies."
Strained relationship
A hashtag bearing the minister's name was circulated extensively on Twitter, amid criticism of him by users, including Saudis, who uploaded pictures of buildings, workplaces and streets in the Kingdom to indicate the level of progress in them.
One of them wrote, wearing a T-shirt bearing the logo of the Aramco oil company, "Goodbye to you is the other Bedouin from the largest oil company in the world."
Last month, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia announced the suspension of importing fruits and vegetables from Lebanon, or allowing their passage through its territory, after customs seized more than 5.3 million Captagon pills hidden in a shipment of pomegranates.
The Gulf market - especially Saudi Arabia - is a major destination for Lebanese fruits and vegetables, and exports are currently an outlet for farmers, in light of the growing economic collapse in the country since 2019.