Saudi Arabia backs a Lebanese proposal that would result in Suleiman Franjieh becoming president of Lebanon after an 18-month presidential vacuum, and hopes it will happen soon, the Saudi ambassador to Lebanon said on Thursday.
“The initiative is a Lebanese one, not a Saudi one, and we bless it and we encourage a result from the dialogue underway among the Christian leaders,” Ali Awad Asiri said in a televised news conference.
Asked whether Saudi Arabia could support Franjieh, an ally of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and the Shiite group Hezbollah, Asiri said that as long as the candidate was Lebanese and picked by Lebanese, he would have Saudi blessing regardless of affiliation.
Reuters
