Lebanese Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri and caretaker Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil held talks on Wednesday on the latest efforts to form a new government, reported the National News Agency (NNA).
Bassil told reporters after the meeting: “We discussed many ideas related to the government.”
“We have previously said that we will not dismiss an idea without studying it. Many ideas are on the table.”
“We are respecting fair representation and the regulations that need to be followed in forming a cabinet,” he added.
“We agreed to continue our work and the necessary contacts with all concerned officials,” he stated.
Later on Wednesday, Speaker Nabih Berri hoped that the government would be formed as soon as possible.
He noted that regional developments confirm his assertions that the obstacles hindering the birth of the cabinet are internal.
Lebanese politicians have been unable to agree on a new government since parliamentary elections in May as rival parties have competed over the allocation of cabinet positions, further unsettling the country’s fragile economy.
On Tuesday, Hariri said he and President Michel Aoun had met and were “determined to form a government”, said NNA.
A breakthrough to create a national unity government in line with Lebanon’s sectarian power-sharing system seemed close last month, but it did not work out and the deadlock resumed. However, Hariri said on Sunday he still believed the government would form early in the new year.
The latest hitch in efforts to form a government came over Sunni Muslim representation in the cabinet. Hariri said on Tuesday that only one difficulty remained and that he and Aoun were working to solve it.
The lack of a government has caused particular concern because Lebanon faces both structural economic problems and regional instability.
Lebanon has the world’s third-highest level of debt to GDP and caretaker Finance Minister Ali Hassan Khalil said on Sunday it faces an economic crisis that he warned could turn into a financial one.
Hariri has pledged to carry out economic reforms that could unlock billions of dollars of international investment in Lebanese power, transport and data infrastructure, aimed at boosting the economy after years of weak growth.
The International Monetary Fund has stressed the importance of Lebanon putting its debt on a sustainable footing, while bond yields and the cost of insuring against Lebanese sovereign debt have shown signs of stress in recent months.
