United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called on the Lebanese politicians to unite. This came in remarks he made ahead of his official visit to Beirut this week to show solidarity with the Lebanese people.
“There is no way Lebanon can find the right track if the Lebanese political leaders are not able to understand that this is the moment, probably the last possible moment, to come together,” he told a press videoconference.
“The divisions among political leaders in Lebanon have paralyzed the institutions, and the paralysis of the institutions, of course, leads to the impossibility to reach agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), to the impossibility to launch effective economic programs and to create the conditions for the country to initiate the recovery,” he explained.
Guterres stressed that the Lebanese must do their part of the job.
Lebanon’s financial system collapsed in 2019 after decades of corruption and inefficiency, an economic crisis that has since spiraled amid political bickering, COVID-19 lockdowns and a Beirut port blast in August 2020 that killed over 200 people and destroyed large swathes of the city - and was the final straw for many.
It defaulted on its international debt in March 2020, after years of political upheaval and economic mismanagement left it unable to service a debt burden that was then worth more than 170% of GDP.
The country started talks with the IMF that soon broke down last year largely because Lebanon's central bank, banks and politicians could not agree with the previous government on the scale of the losses in the financial system.
The Lebanese pound has lost almost 90% of its value over the past two years, food prices have soared by over 550%, and worsening shortages of basic goods including fuel and medication are making daily life a struggle.
The UN said Guterres will arrive in Beirut on Sunday afternoon for a state visit.
The Secretary-General will meet with government officials, including President Michel Aoun, Speaker Nabih Berri and Prime Minister Najib Mikati, as well as a number of religious leaders and civil society representatives.
He will pay tribute to the victims of the Beirut Port blast and will also undertake field visits to interact with people impacted by the numerous crises the country has been facing.
Finally, he will head to southern Lebanon to visit the UN Interim Force in Lebanon and tour parts of the Blue Line.
