PM Hariri: Lebanon, Saudi to sign economic deals

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman (R) meets with Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri (L) and French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris on 10 April, 2018 [Twitter]

Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri today said he had held an “excellent” meeting with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman and expected Lebanon to sign economic deals with Saudi Arabia soon.

“We will see very soon certain agreements that will be signed with Saudi Arabia vis-a-vis different sectors of the economy, whether it is industry, and tourism and services,” Hariri said during a news conference in Beirut without giving further details.

“God willing in the coming few weeks this is what we are trying to work towards,” he said.

Where is Hariri? Saudi Arabia, Lebanon – Cartoon [Sabaaneh/MiddleEastMonitor]

Lebanon’s relations with Saudi Arabia had plunged into crisis in November, when Hariri abruptly resigned from his post as prime minister during a visit to the Kingdom.

Lebanese officials said at the time that Saudi Arabia had forced him to step down – which Riyadh denied. Hariri retracted his resignation after returning to Lebanon weeks later, following French intervention.

Hariri met with Bin Salman in Paris during the latter’s official visit to France yesterday.

READ: Saudi Arabia, France sign deals worth $18bn

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