The Quai d'Orsay, France's foreign ministry headquartrs, in Paris. (Credit: AFP file)
BEIRUT — France's foreign ministry said at a press briefing Friday that Lebanon will "probably" be on the agenda of a regional summit scheduled to take place in Amman before the end of the year, which French President Emmanuel Macron is expected to attend.
Responding to reporters at a Paris press briefing a spokesperson for the ministry did not specify whether Macron would make a stopover in Beirut during his trip to Jordan.
The spokesperson called for the election of a new president, as Lebanon heads towards two months without a head of state following the end of Michel Aoun's term on Oct. 31. "Regarding the power vacuum in Lebanon, I would like to reiterate our concern," she said, according to a statement reported on the Quai d'Orsay's website.
"As you know, we call on the Lebanese actors to take their responsibilities — and it is theirs — to redress their country, to improve the Lebanese situation, and this indeed requires the presidential election to be successful and the proper and full functioning of institutions to be restored."
Lebanon has been reeling from a three-year deepening socio-economic and political crisis. On top of that, the country has had no president since Nov. 1 and no functional cabinet since legislative elections in May. The previous cabinet, headed by Najib Mikati, is currently serving in a caretaker capacity.
The international conference scheduled in Amman on Dec. 20 will include France, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Egypt, Turkey and Iran.
The spokesperson stressed that "the whole purpose" of this event is "to work on issues that affect the stability of the region."
"You know what our vigilance and attention to the stability and sovereignty of Lebanon is. This will probably be discussed on this occasion," she added.