International Conference on Lebanon: the needs to be covered estimated at more than 350 million dollars

The international conference on Lebanon organized on Wednesday by France and the United Nations, one year to the day after the explosion of the port of Beirut, aims to raise emergency aid of at least 350 million dollars for the Lebanese population, the French presidency said on Monday. "While the situation has deteriorated (...) the United Nations assess at more than 350 million dollars (357 million exactly,

) the new needs which will have to be met," noted the Elysee, while the Lebanon is plunged into the worst socio-economic crisis in its history.

It is a question of coming to the aid of the people of Lebanon again ", after a 280 million euros raised during a first international conference in August 2020, shortly after the explosion which killed more than 200 people and traumatized the country, stressed the presidency. American Joe Biden, who will speak via a video, Egyptian Abdel Fatah al-Sissi, King Abdullah II of Jordan and Lebanese Head of State Michel Aoun.

The Prime Ministers of Iraq, Greece, the Director of the IMF, the President of the European Council Charles Michel as well as the German, Austrian, Italian, Spanish, British, Dutch, Belgian, Croatian and Finnish foreign ministers will also be present, as will as representatives of Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

This third international conference organized under the aegis of France, after those of August 9 and December 2, 2020, focuses only on emergency aid and not on the structural aid that the country needs but which remains conditional on formation of a government capable of initiating fundamental reforms.

Lebanon has been without government since the resignation of Hassan Diab and his team on August 10, 2020.

Political crisis

The new Prime Minister-designate, Najib Mikati, announced on Monday that a government would not see the light of day before the commemoration of the Beirut port explosion on August 4 as he "wished" to do, with political bargaining once again obstructing its task. "This conference will be the occasion once again to send a very clear political message: despite the commitment of the various Lebanese political leaders, Lebanon still does not have a government", underlined the Elysee.

The participants will "reaffirm the need to constitute a government quickly capable of implementing the structural reforms expected by the Lebanese population and the international community and which will make it possible to provide support which goes beyond the emergency", added the French Presidency. Despite threats of sanctions from the European Union, warnings and accusations of "organized obstruction" in recent months, Lebanese leaders have not budged an iota, continuing their haggling.