The Greek President, Kyriakos Mitsotakis (left), Lebanese President, Joseph Aoun, French President, Emmanuel Macron, and Cypriot President, Nikos Christodoulides, during a joint press conference after a meeting on the Eastern Mediterranean, at the Élysée Palace, on March 28, 2025. (Credit: Sarah Meyssonnier/AFP)
The Lebanese president, Joseph Aoun, met on Friday morning at the Élysée with his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron. The two heads of state spoke via videoconference, announced previously, with interim Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa, the Lebanese presidency posted on X. This was followed by a meeting with the Cypriot and Greek leaders, according to the same source. It was a discussion on the Eastern Mediterranean to address "challenges related to maritime safety" and "the impact that the regional environment can have on security," explained the French presidency to AFP yesterday.
The tripartite meeting between the Lebanese, Syrian and French presidents was to discuss "security at the Syrian-Lebanese border," where "tensions have led to clashes," explained the Élysée, as the Lebanese and Syrian defense ministers concluded an agreement on their common border in Jeddah on Thursday, emphasizing the importance of "facing security and military threats" on it, announced the official Saudi news agency on Friday morning.
Aoun arrived in the morning via Le Bourget airport in France for his first official trip to the West since his election in January, to which France contributed to initiate reform processes to pull Lebanon out of the crisis. He had already been to Saudi Arabia.
Five-party discussion on the Eastern Mediterranean
For this visit to France, the Lebanese president is accompanied by Foreign Minister Joe Raggi and the interim Lebanese ambassador to France, Ziad Taan, told the state-run National News Agency (NNA).
Macron and Aoun are to discuss the "difficulties" and "challenges" facing Lebanon, according to the Élysée, which calls for a "full implementation of the cease-fire." They must also discuss the "reconstruction conference" of Lebanon with international donors, which the French president committed to organizing but whose date has not yet been announced.
Macron's entourage sees Joseph Aoun's visit as a recognition of "France's unwavering friendship and support for Lebanon." His election and the formation of a government led by reformist Nawaf Salam ended the political deadlock that had lasted for more than two years.
The reforms
The new leaders now have the arduous task of carrying out the reforms demanded by the international community to unlock the necessary funds to pull the country out of the economic crisis that has lasted for more than five years. They must also oversee the process of disarming Hezbollah, under the agreement that ended the deadly war between the pro-Iranian formation and Israel, from which Lebanon emerged bloodless at the end of November.
The Lebanese president said on Wednesday, while receiving the French special envoy for Lebanon Jean-Yves Le Drian, that he was "determined with the government to overcome the difficulties that the reform process in economic, banking, financial, and judicial domains might face."
Since 2019, Lebanon has been plunged into an unprecedented economic crisis attributed by much of the population to the mismanagement, corruption, neglect, and inaction of the ruling class that has been in place for decades.
This article was originally published in French in L'Orient-Le Jour.