No movement on French Lebanon roadmap or C. Bank audit: French Presidency
France's presidency said on Wednesday that there would be no international financial support for Lebanon until there was a government in place and warned that an audit of the central bank was more urgent than ever.
For all the latest headlines follow our Google News channel online or via the app.
A financial meltdown has crashed Lebanon's currency, paralyzed banks, sent inflation soaring and increased poverty. Suggestions of a looming end to subsidies have triggered panic buying.
“To borrow or lend money you need trust and trust isn't there,” a French presidential official said ahead of a video conference to assess the humanitarian situation.
“We will stay like this as long as there is no credible government in place.”
The official said that no measures for a proposed French roadmap to help the country had been implemented.
“The information we have is that the situation is getting worse and heading towards worse problems and that makes it even more necessary for a real audit (of the central bank),” the official said.
He said world powers would continue to apply political pressure on Lebanese politicians, but gave no indication on how this pressure could manifest itself other than questioning the efficiency of recent US sanctions that have targeted allies of Iranian-backed Hezbollah.
“They (US sanctions) have changed nothing on the ground. We need to continue to apply a public political pressure campaign, while supporting the population,” the official said.
Read more:
US dispatching envoy to Lebanon, Israel in bid to revive border talks after deadlock
France’s Macron pushes Lebanon aid meeting with no political progress
Lebanon's Central Bank can subsidize basic commodities for two more months