BEIRUT: Economic and geopolitical factors stand behind the two visits of French President Emmanuel Macron to Lebanon following Beirut port’s explosions, experts said.
Macron visited Lebanon on Aug. 6, two days following the blasts which killed around 191 people and wounded at least 6,500 others.
He paid another visit to Lebanon on Sept. 1 where he met with Lebanese officials and representatives of the civil society, vowing to hold an aid conference for Lebanon by mid-October on condition that local authorities achieve the required structural reforms within eight weeks.
Hilal Kashan, chair of the Political Studies Department at the American University of Beirut, said that France has a “moral commitment” toward Lebanon.
Khashan explained that the French were given by the Ottoman Empire a concession in Lebanon to protect the Maronite sect while France created Greater Lebanon after World War I.
“France has a genuine interest in Lebanon.
Every French president has previously shown a keen interest in Lebanon not to forget that our country has a francophone character,” Khashan said.
Khashan noted that geopolitical factors also stand behind France’s interest in Lebanon.
“Turkey is expanding in the region and one of the objectives of France is to stop Turkish advancement in the Middle East.
Lebanon here is a central country for the French in their efforts to fight against Turkish influence,” he said.
Khashan explained that the United States is leaving the Middle East and no Arab country can fill the vacuum created by the departure of the Americans.
“Iran and Turkey are trying to fill this gap knowing that Turkey is establishing itself in Akkar and Tripoli by involving itself in aid programs in northern Lebanon.
Also, Turkey has deals with the Iraqi Kurdistan, and Libya while they are also collaborating with Ethiopians on the issue of the controversial Renaissance Dam,” Khashan added.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan criticized his French counterpart following Macron’s first visit to Lebanon by accusing him of “putting on a show,” and aiming “to bring back a colonialist structure.”
Erdogan’s remarks also came following Macron’s announcement that France plans to strengthen its military presence in the Eastern Mediterranean region with the cooperation of European partners, including Greece which has seen rise in tension with Turkey since Ankara resumed energy exploration. –Agencies
