Friday, January 24, 2025 Saudi Arabia’s top diplomat visits Lebanon, signaling a potential reset in ties and urging reforms as the crisis-hit nation seeks Gulf support for recovery. Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister, Prince Faisal bin Farhan, made a historic visit to Beirut, marking the first high-level engagement between the two nations in nearly a decade. The visit comes as Lebanon grapples with an unprecedented economic crisis and seeks to mend strained relations with Gulf states.
Prince Faisal’s trip underscores a potential reset in Saudi-Lebanese ties, offering a glimmer of hope for a nation in dire need of reform and reconstruction. Lebanon’s challenges are immense. Since 2019, the country has been engulfed in a financial collapse widely blamed on corruption and years of mismanagement.
The situation has left the nation teetering on the brink of economic ruin, compounded by the destruction caused by the Israel-Hezbollah conflict. International donors have long demanded substantial reforms as a condition for releasing billions of dollars in aid—funds critical to stabilizing Lebanon’s faltering economy. The recent election of President Michel Aoun has sparked cautious optimism.
Aoun’s leadership ended more than two years of political paralysis, and his administration now faces the monumental task of addressing Lebanon’s crises. With Nawaf Salam, a respected former judge of the International Court of Justice, named as prime minister-designate, hopes are rising.