President Michel Aoun (left) receiving Prime Minister-designate Najib Mikati, Aug. 17, 2022, in Baabda. (Photo Credit: AFP)
BEIRUT — Lebanese Prime Minister-designate Najib Mikati was received Thursday morning by President Michel Aoun at the Presidential Palace in Baabda, in a new meeting focused on the formation of the government that has been stalled since last May, when the current cabinet of Mikati was tasked with managing affairs after the last legislative elections.
The meeting was announced on Twitter by the Aoun's account. The meeting comes ahead of Mikati's departure to London to attend the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II on Monday, and then his trip to the United States to attend the annual session of the United Nations General Assembly on September 21.
"The meeting lasted half an hour and not just minutes. When I am back from travels, I will meet again with Aoun. I will not leave the Baabda palace before forming a new government," Mikati said, in a brief statement before getting in his car.
Relations between Aoun and the Prime Minister-designate have become strained in recent months, due to the tug-of-war over the formation of the government. Aoun, whose term expires on Oct. 31, refuses to cede his prerogatives to an outgoing government. As for Najib Mikati, he refuses to add six political ministers of state to his team, as Aoun has demanded. Since then, negotiations have stalled.
The establishment of a cabinet may have to wait until Mikati returns to Lebanon, in the best of cases. If no cabinet is formed before Oct. 31, Lebanon could experience an unprecedented vacancy in the executive branch, while the country has been in social and economic tatters since 2019.