The Lebanese government and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) will begin on Monday negotiations over the draft rescue plan, which seeks aid from the international organization to stop the financial and economic collapse and curb the deficit in the state budget.
Parliamentary sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that the IMF would not easily approve funding the government’s plan, adding that the first round of talks would be followed by a series of negotiations, which would also include Central Bank Governor, Riad Salameh, the Association of Lebanese Banks and the relevant financial authorities.
According to the sources, the government would run marathon discussions, which would perhaps end with the IMF’s approval of the plan, allowing Lebanon to obtain a financial loan under an official agreement with the Fund.
The sources noted that the country would not have been forced to resort to the IMF, had previous governments succeeded in seizing international opportunities, such as the Paris and CEDRE conferences.
The government must restore the confidence of the Lebanese in order to regain the trust of the international community, they underlined.
Moreover, the IMF would insist that the government prepare an integrated plan to adopt permanent solutions to the electricity file, including the formation of regulatory bodies to curb the deficit in this sector, the sources told Asharq Al-Awsat.
As for Hezbollah’s stance on resorting to the IMF, the sources wondered whether the party would have the ability to set its conditions and whether there was an alternative to cooperation with it.
Ultimately, the government and the IMF will engage into lengthy negotiations, with no tangible results in the near future, the parliamentary sources predicted.
