Saudi Envoy: Some Lebanese Parties Don't Want Good Saudi-Lebanese Ties

Newly-appointed Saudi Ambassador to Lebanon Walid al-Yaaqoub on Monday lamented that some Lebanese parties “do not want good ties” between Lebanon and Saudi Arabia.

“Unfortunately, there are parties in Lebanon who do not want a good relation between the kingdom and Lebanon,” said al-Yaaqoub in response to a reporter's question after talks with ex-PM Najib Miqati.

“They are seeking to distort it with all their might, and we, God willing, are counting on the wisdom of the Lebanese to resolve this problem,” the ambassador added.

Al-Yaaqoub also met on Monday with Kataeb Party chief MP Sami Gemayel and Information Minister Melhem Riachi as part of his introductory meetings with Lebanese leaders and officials.

Talks with Gemayel tackled “the current developments and the situation in the region,” according to the National News Agency.

His talks with Riachi meanwhile addressed “the general situations, bilateral ties and the journalistic relations between the two countries.”