Report: Hariri to Visit Riyadh as Part of Gulf Tour
Prime Minister Saad Hariri is expected to embark on a tour to Gulf countries that will include Saudi Arabia, signaling a “diplomatic breakthrough” after strained ties between the Kingdom and Lebanon, the Kuwaiti newspaper al-Seyasah reported on Wednesday.
Quoting unnamed ministerial sources, the daily said they “expressed satisfaction” with what they described as “diplomatic breakthrough” between Lebanon and Saudi Arabia, following what appeared like a diplomatic tussle that caught Lebanon's ambassador to SA and his Saudi counterpart over representation.
On Tuesday, the Saudi Ambassador to Lebanon Walid al-Yaacoub presented a copy of his credentials to Lebanon's Foreign Minister in preparation for presenting them to President Michel Aoun, ending months of delay.
Saudi Arabia named its ambassador in September. Ambassador Walid al-Yaacoub arrived in Lebanon in November, but still has not been sworn in by the president.
Lebanon's ambassador to Saudi Arabia was named to the post in late July and was only accredited late in December in Saudi Arabia.
The delay highlighted tension between SA and Lebanon following the bizarre, now-reversed resignation of Prime Minister Saad Hariri from Riyadh.
Lebanon was thrown into a political crisis after the Nov. 4 resignation of the Premier which he delivered in a televised statement read from the Saudi capital, Riyadh. Hariri has since withdrawn his resignation and returned home nearly three weeks later.
The resignation was widely perceived as Saudi-orchestrated, and part of the kingdom's high-stakes rivalry with Iran.
Source: Naharnet
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