Lebanese leaders have resumed their consultations on the formation of the new government, amid an atmosphere of optimism, as many spoke of a “glimmer of hope” after four and a half months of the government’s caretaking status.
A meeting was held on Wednesday evening at the Baabda Palace between President Michel Aoun and Prime Minister-designate Saad al-Hariri, who expressed optimism over the imminent formation of the government.
“The atmosphere is positive, God willing, and I am very optimistic,” Hariri told reporters following the meeting, adding that he agreed with the president on the need to speed up the formation of the government due to the critical economic situation.
In remarks to Asharq Al-Awsat, presidential sources talked about the presence of a “real atmosphere” for the formation of a new government, including ideas and proposals that were discussed during the meeting between Aoun and Hariri.
“Most of these ideas contain answers to the reservations put forward by the president on the previous version. This doesn’t mean that the government will be formed now, but certainly there is new climate that constitutes a ground for its formation,” the sources said.
“If this positive atmosphere is materialized, the government may see the light in a matter of days or two weeks at the latest,” they added.
Earlier on Wednesday, Speaker Nabih Berri announced that he sees a “glimmer of hope” in the Cabinet formation process.
“The solution [of the existing crises] begins with the formation of a government as soon as possible,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Future Movement used a more cautious approach, so that the Lebanese would not be as deceived as in the past few weeks. According to the member of the party’s political bureau member, Rashed Fayed, “signs of optimism sent by some leaders are normal, but this does not mean that we have reached the final solutions.”
In parallel, political forces do not hide the seriousness of the Israeli threats, underlining the need to confront them with the formation of the government.
The "Liberation and Development" bloc, headed by Berri, stressed that the recent Israeli statements and threats required national unity.
“The situation calls for the formation of a government to get the country out of crisis,” the bloc said in a statement.
