Lebanese President Michel Aoun has discussed with US Ambassador Dorothy Shea a wave of new tighter US sanctions on Syria, a diplomat told Asharq Al-Awsat.
Shea on Thursday handed Aoun a letter that includes the text of the US Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act, which takes effect later this month, the diplomat said.
Shea stressed to the Lebanese president that the new law is on Syria, saying her country continues to back Lebanon, the source added.
The ministers of foreign affairs, information, economy and justice and their director generals, in addition to Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh, met on Thursday to discuss the Caesar Act’s repercussions on Lebanon.
One of the conferees described the meeting as "consultative."
The Caesar Act targets companies dealing with Damascus. The sanctions are expected to worsen the already dire economic situation in Syria.
Syria's economy has been battered by nine years of war compounded by a financial crisis in Lebanon, which had served as a conduit to bring dollars into regime-held areas despite international sanctions.
