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 Lebanon |  Saudi Arabia |
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The diplomatic relations between Lebanon and Saudi Arabia are the relationship between two Arab nations in the Middle East. Lebanon has an embassy in Riyadh and Saudi Arabia has an embassy in Beirut.
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Lebanon | Saudi Arabia |
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The diplomatic relations between Lebanon and Saudi Arabia are the relationship between two Arab nations in the Middle East. Lebanon has an embassy in Riyadh and Saudi Arabia has an embassy in Beirut.
The modern territory of Saudi Arabia and Lebanon had seen various empires exerting control in the region, in which notable ones being the Persian Empire, Roman Empire, Alexander the Great's empire, Arab Caliphates, Seljuk Empire, Mamluk Sultanate and the Ottoman Empire; still, it was the Muslim conquest of the Levant from the Arabs of Arabian Peninsula that brought Islam and Arabic language to Lebanon, remains a highly powerful legacy which turned Lebanese people into Arabic-speaking people, although Islam didn't become the majority religion of Lebanese people but rather parts of a diverse Lebanese society.
Historically, both two were parts of the Ottoman Empire, with Lebanon under a self-government rule while what would be the modern day-Saudi Arabia was under the direct control of the Ottoman Empire. [1] After the end of the Ottoman rule, the Turks vacated from both nations and the Saudi Kingdom would be found from the ashes of the World War I while Lebanon fell under the French rule. [2] It was not until the end of the World War II that saw the two nations officially establish relations.
The two countries established relations once World War II came to an end. In the first decades, Lebanon was embroiled with the conflict against Israel as part of greater Arab–Israeli conflict, Saudi Arabia provided political support for Lebanon but did not send any military force to assist the Lebanese. [3] In 1952, the two countries established diplomatic relations; in the meantime, Lebanese president Camille Chamoun and King Abdulaziz exchanged visits a year later. [4]
With the outbreak of the Lebanese Civil War, Saudi Arabia began to play the role as a peace broker for the Lebanese affairs, during which the Saudis sent a group of peacekeeping soldiers to the country before merging with the Arab Deterrent Force. However, it was that time witnessed the rise of the Islamic Iran, overthrowing the previous Shah's rule and Iran began prompting its presence via Hezbollah. This had raised alarm among the Saudi government and as for the result, with the Taif Agreement being signed, Saudi Arabia started to pour billions of dollars to reconstruct Lebanon in order to fend off growing Iranian influence. [5]
In 2008, the Saudi Foreign Minister, prince Saud Al Faisal secretly proposed setting up an Arab military force to fight Hezbollah in Lebanon with the help of the United States, UN and NATO. According to leaked diplomatic memos, Faisal has accused the UN troops in Lebanon of "sitting doing nothing", and voiced concerns that Iran will use Hezbollah to take over Lebanon. [6]
In February 2016, Saudi Arabia decided to halt $3b package to Lebanese army, as Lebanon failed to condemn the attack on the Saudi diplomatic missions in Iran. [7]
In 2017, Saudi Arabia and Lebanon were involved in a diplomatic conflict that almost sparked into a war, where Lebanon's Prime Minister Saad Hariri summoned his resignation under Saudi pressure to oust Hezbollah from Lebanon. [8] [9] [10] [11] This was followed by Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the UAE calling its citizens to leave Lebanon. [12] Later, Hariri revoked the resignation and continued to serve as Prime Minister until 2020.
In August 2020, Saudi Arabia sent 120 tonnes of supplies to provide humanitarian aid to the victims following the Beirut explosion. [13] In May 2021, Saudi Arabia summoned the Lebanese ambassador, following controversial comments from the Lebanese Minister of Foreign Affairs and Emigrants, Charbel Wehbe, against their country. [14]
On 29 October 2021, Saudi Arabia expelled Lebanese ambassador from the country after George Kordahi, a Lebanese minister, criticised Saudi Arabia's involvement in the Yemeni Civil War. [15] It has been speculated that Hezbollah's involvement in favor of the Houthis the Yemeni Civil War was a major factor in this decision. [16]
On December 4, 2021, George Kordahi resigned, stating in a news conference “I won’t accept being used as a reason to harm Lebanon and our Lebanese brothers in Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries". After Kordahi's resignation, a phone call was held between the French president Emmanuel Macron, the Saudi crown prince Mohammed Bin Salman, and the Lebanese prime minister Najib Mikati. [17]
On 3 January 2022, in a televised speech in Hezbollah Secretary-General, Hassan Nasrallah, accused Saudi Arabia of exporting ISIL (ISIS) ideology and transporting cars rigged with explosives for suicide attacks to Iraq. [18] Later on the same day, Lebanese prime minister, Najib Mikati said Nasrallah's criticism of Saudi Arabia did not serve Lebanon's national interest nor represent the country's official stance. [19]
On the 7th of April 2022, relations were partially restored with the return of the Saudi Ambassador to Beirut. [20]
In 2001 and 2002, Saudi Arabia pledge to pay $700m in aid, during the Paris II conference to achieve Lebanon's economic development. [4] [21] The remittances from Lebanese expats in the Gulf countries accounted for 10–15% of their country’s GDP from 1990 to 2004. [4]
Following the 2006 Lebanon War, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait deposited $1.5b into Lebanon's central bank to support the Lebanese pound. [4] A year later, Riyadh pledged $1b in aid to Lebanon, during a donor meeting chaired by French President Jacques Chirac. [4] Moreover, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates had accounted 76% of the foreign direct investment projects in Lebanon from 2003 to 2015. [22] [23]
In April 2021, Saudi Arabia banned the Lebanese fruit and vegetable imports to Saudi Arabia due to the drug smuggling and after 5.3m captagon pills were found in pomegranates, until receiving guarantees from Lebanon to stop the smuggles. [24] Then the Lebanese authorities said that they are putting huge efforts to fight drug smuggling and are ready to cooperate in this issue and called for "more cooperation" between Lebanon and Saudi Arabia. [25] However, Arabian Peninsula states import 55% of Lebanese fruit and vegetable export, [26] which is worth between $20m and $34m annually. [27]
Hezbollah is a Lebanese Shia Islamist political party and militant group, led since 1992 by its Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah. Hezbollah's paramilitary wing is the Jihad Council, and its political wing is the Loyalty to the Resistance Bloc party in the Lebanese Parliament.
The history of Lebanon covers the history of the modern Republic of Lebanon and the earlier emergence of Greater Lebanon under the French Mandate for Syria and the Lebanon, as well as the previous history of the region, covered by the modern state.
Michel Naim Aoun is a Lebanese politician and former military general who served as the President of Lebanon from 31 October 2016 until 30 October 2022.
Saad El-Din Rafik Al-Hariri is a Lebanese-Saudi politician who served as the prime minister of Lebanon from 2009 to 2011 and 2016 to 2020. The son of Rafic Hariri, he founded and has been leading the Future Movement party since 2007. He is seen as "the strongest figurehead" of the March 14 Alliance.
The 2006–2008 Lebanese protests were a series of political protests and sit-ins in Lebanon that began on 1 December 2006, led by groups that opposed the US and Saudi-backed government of Prime Minister Fouad Siniora and ended on 21 May 2008 with the signing of the Doha Agreement. The opposition was made up of Hezbollah, Amal, and the Free Patriotic Movement (FPM); a number of smaller parties were also involved, including the Marada party, the Lebanese Communist Party and the Syrian Social Nationalist Party. A majority of the members of the government were part of the anti-Syrian March 14 Alliance, a coalition of political parties and independents in Lebanon. The two groups were also divided along religious lines, with most Sunnis and Druze supporting the government, and most Shi'a supporting the opposition. The Christian community was split between the two factions, with Michel Aoun, the leader of the FPM, claiming to have more than 70% support among the Christians, based on the results of the 2005 parliamentary election.
Lebanon–Syria relations were officially established in October 2008 when Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad issued a decree to establish diplomatic relations with Lebanon for the first time since both countries gained independence from France in 1943 (Lebanon) and 1946 (Syria). Lebanon had traditionally been seen by Syria as part of Greater Syria. Following World War I, the League of Nations Mandate partitioned Ottoman Syria under French control, eventually leading to the creation of nation-states Lebanon and Syria. Relations between the two countries had been strained, especially with the 29-year Syrian occupation of Lebanon, accusations of Syrian intervention within Lebanese politics before and after withdrawal of Syrian troops from Lebanon, and suspicions of Syria assassinating Lebanese political figures like former prime minister Rafic Hariri. Syria officially recognized Lebanon's sovereignty in 2008.
The 2008 Lebanon conflict was a brief intrastate military conflict in May 2008 in Lebanon between opposition militias and pro-government Sunnis, after the 18-month-long political crisis spiraled out of control, when the government's decision to dismantle Hezbollah's telecommunication system, which led to Hezbollah seizing control of west Beirut, and ended with the adoption of the Doha Accord in 2008.
France–Lebanon relations are the international relations between France and Lebanon. France, the former colonial power, enjoys friendly relations with Lebanon and has often provided support to the Lebanese. The French language is widely spoken fluently throughout Lebanon and is taught as well as used as a medium of education in many Lebanese schools. Both nations are members of the Francophonie.
Saudi Arabia and Turkey relations have long fluctuated between cooperation and alliance to enmity and distrust. Since the 19th century, the two nations have always had a complicated relationship. While Turkey and Saudi Arabia are major economic partners, the two have a tense political relationship, deemed from the historic enmity.
Iran and Lebanon have diplomatic relations, with embassies in each other countries. Since the Iranian Revolution in 1979, the two countries have deepened relations amidst controversy in Lebanon and abroad.
Content from the United States diplomatic cables leak has depicted the United States' opinion of the Middle East-related subjects extensively. WikiLeaks has published these classified documents, diplomatic cables, between the United States Department of State and its diplomatic missions around the world. Many previously unknown statements or opinions about a variety of Middle Eastern topics have been revealed.
General elections were held in Lebanon on 6 May 2018. Although originally scheduled for 2013, the election was postponed three times in 2013, 2014 and 2017 under various pretexts, including the security situation, the failure of the Parliament to elect a new President, and the technical requirements of holding an election. A new electoral law adopted in 2017 provides a proportional representation system for the first time.
Adnan Mansour is a Lebanese diplomat, politician and the former minister of foreign affairs and emigrants.
Saudi Arabia–Syria relations refer to bilateral and economic relations between Saudi Arabia and the Syrian Arab Republic. Diplomatic ties between these two countries of the Middle East have long been strained by the major events in the region. Saudi Arabia has an embassy in Damascus, and Syria has an embassy in Riyadh. Both countries are members of the Arab League and share close cultural ties.
Fahd Hariri is a Lebanese billionaire heir and property developer, the youngest son of Rafic Hariri.
Iran and Saudi Arabia are engaged in an ongoing struggle for influence in the Middle East and other regions of the Muslim world. The two countries have provided varying degrees of support to opposing sides in nearby conflicts, including the civil wars in Syria and Yemen; and disputes in Bahrain, Lebanon, Qatar, and Iraq. The struggle also extends to disputes or broader competition in other countries globally including in West, North and East Africa, South, Central, Southeast Asia, the Balkans, and the Caucasus.
In 2017, Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri abruptly announced his resignation while he was in Saudi Arabia on 4 November 2017. Shortly thereafter, the foreign relations between both countries and allied regional neighbors became increasingly strained. On 6 November, Saudi Arabia claimed Lebanon declared war between the two states, despite leaders of Lebanon stating otherwise. On 9 November, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait, and the United Arab Emirates asked their citizens to leave Lebanon. The conflict is thought to be part of the larger Iran–Saudi Arabia proxy conflict.
Lebanon's role in the Syrian Civil War has been limited, compared to the role of other regional and international actors. While the Lebanese Republic has not been officially involved in the conflict, it has been greatly affected by it and some Lebanese factors have taken an active role in the Syrian War and its spillover into Lebanon.
The 17 October Protests, commonly referred to as the 17 October Revolution were a series of civil protests in Lebanon that began after the Lebanese cabinet announced financial measures on 17 October 2019. These national protests were triggered by planned taxes on gasoline, tobacco, and VoIP calls on applications such as WhatsApp, but quickly expanding into a country-wide condemnation of sectarian rule, the stagnation of the economy, unemployment, endemic corruption in the public sector, legislation that was perceived to shield the ruling class from accountability and failures of the government to provide basic services such as electricity, water, and sanitation.
Events in the year 2022 in Lebanon.
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