October 31, 2021
Yemen Comments Put Fresh Strain on Lebanon’s Gulf Ties
President Putin Asks Israeli PM Bennet for Help
Greed and Deadly Medicine Shortages in Lebanon
Yemen Comments Put Fresh Strain on Lebanon’s Gulf Ties
Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates summoned Lebanese ambassadors on Wednesday to protest comments made by Lebanon’s information minister before he took office that were critical of the Saudi-led military intervention in Yemen. The comments by George Kordahi in an interview he said was recorded on August 5 have, since it began circulating on social media on Tuesday, further strained Lebanon’s already difficult ties with Gulf Arab states. [Reuters]
RESPONSE
“This is just what Lebanon doesn’t need right now, more fallout with the Gulf countries, at a time when the US is trying to coordinate support for reform in Lebanon with them. The Information Minister seems to care more about his personal views than the international effort to bring countries together in support of one of the worst economic disasters of the past three 150 years. Prime Minister Miqati denounced Minister Kordahi’s comments. The rest of the government should follow suit.”
-ATFL President Edward M. Gabriel
President Putin Asks Israeli PM Bennett for Help Easing US Syria Sanctions
Axios recenlty reported that Russian President Vladimir Putin asked Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett for help urging the United States to ease some of its Caesar Act sanctions on Syria so that Russian companies can join reconstruction efforts in the country. Israeli officials say Russia argues US sanctions deter foreign companies from taking part in reconstruction, therefore the door is open for Iranian companies that are already under US sanctions to be awarded major projects in Syria. [Axios]
RESPONSE
“The intertwining though often conflicting interests among players in the Middle East is dizzying. Russia wants Israel’s help with lifting US sanctions on Syria. Despite the fact that many Israelis are of Russian heritage, Syria is nothing if not a malign actor towards Israel. This illustrates the degree to which Russia perceives that Israel greatly influences US policy in the region. Why help? So that Russian companies can have contracts in Syria without fear of Caesar Act sanctions, and, by the way, prevent Iran from expanding its interests in Syria. Will Turkey be the next to ask? This is another illustration of the need for a region-wide US strategy that respects our bilateral interests.”
-ATFL Policy Director Jean AbiNader
Tamara Qiblawi: How Greed Fueled Lebanon’s Deadly Milk and Medicine Shortage
Tamara Qiblawi recently wrote for CNN on Lebanon’s food and medicine shortage crisis. Qiblawi details how the country’s financial crisis was fueled by greed of the elite, adding that ordinary people are paying the price for it. She writes, “The country’s economic depression has been driven by a rapid depletion of public finances, exacerbated by what the World Bank says was a deliberate mismanagement of the crisis on the part of the ruling elite.” [CNN]
RESPONSE
“Even during the civil war of 1975-1990, the Lebanese people did not experience the kind of shortages there are today. Blame it on subsidies, scarcity, or currency fluctuations, whatever. The reality is that the solution to the civil war of making warlords into ministers only deepened and hardened the corruption that became endemic during the Syrian occupation. How can the common people survive when their leaders are complicit in enabling a system that deprives their own people of essential goods and services? Will we ever know a Lebanon for the Lebanese?”
-ATFL Policy Director Jean AbiNader
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the position of the American Task Force on Lebanon, a non-profit, nonpartisan leadership organization of Lebanese-Americans.