French President Emmanuel Macron said he is sending France's foreign minister to Lebanon this week to prevent an escalation of tensions in the Middle East , BTA reported. Macron made his statement during the General Debates of the UN General Assembly.
"The biggest risk at the moment is the risk of escalation," the French leader said from the podium. "There cannot be, there must not be a war in Lebanon," he emphasized.
"We strongly call on Israel to stop the escalation in Lebanon and Hezbollah to stop firing at Israel," added the French leader.
Regarding the conflict in Gaza, Macron said that although Israel has the right to defend itself after the attack by the Palestinian group "Hamas" on October 7, 2023, the war has gone on too long and must end now.
"There is no justification, no explanation for the deaths of thousands of Palestinian civilians. "Too many civilians have died," he said and specified that his country supports the decision on the existence of two states - Israeli and Palestinian.
In his speech to world leaders gathered at the United Nations, Emmanuel Macron also spoke about injustice and inequality in the world.
According to him, the fragmentation in society will increase more and more if countries do not restore their trust and respect for each other and pay equal attention to all the suffering of the world without applying double standards.
He reaffirmed the French position on the war in Ukraine and said that his country would continue to support the country in pushing back Russian forces.
"What Russia is doing is not in the interest of the UN. The question of Ukraine is a question of security in Europe and the world. It is in the common interest for Ukraine to win," Macron said.
The French president also touched on issues related to Africa. He explained that his country has done a lot for the continent, especially for the Sahel region, where it fights against terrorism.
"Europe and Africa have a common destiny that requires cooperation between the two continents in the field of security, but this requires our mutual respect," he said from the rostrum.
Macron added that France also wants to cooperate with the countries of the Indo-Pacific region.
The French head of state also spoke about the reform of the Security Council.
"The Security Council must be expanded. Germany, Japan, India and Brazil should become its permanent members, and Africa should also have a representative in the body," he said.
At the end of his speech, Emmanuel Macron thanked the UN for its initiatives and welcomed the adoption of the Pact for the Future.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barro said his country and the US were working on a proposal for a 21-day ceasefire to allow time for talks to settle the conflict in Lebanon between Israel and the Shiite movement " ;Hezbollah", BTA reported.
In a speech to members of the UN Security Council, the number one diplomat in Paris indicated that the idea would be presented very soon.
"Finding a diplomatic solution is possible. In recent days, we have been working with our American partners on the basis of a temporary ceasefire for a period of 21 days so that negotiations can take place during that time,'' Barro told the 15-member Council. "We count on both sides to accept it (the offer) without any delay."
Barro, who will head to Lebanon these days, said Paris has been interacting with the affected countries in outlining the parameters for a diplomatic exit from the crisis based on UN Security Council Resolution 1701.
"The road is difficult, but not impossible" to pass, he said.
Resolution 1701 - passed after the month-long war between Israel and Hezbollah in 2006 - expanded the mandate of UN peacekeepers to allow them to assist the Lebanese army in keeping parts of southern Lebanon free of forces and weapons , other than those of the Lebanese state.
However, the document has caused tension with Hezbollah, which effectively controls all of southern Lebanon despite the Lebanese army being based there. Hezbollah is a heavily armed organization and at the same time the most influential force in political life in Lebanon.
US Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN Robert Wood told the Council that the only long-term solution is the full implementation of Resolution 1701.
"The United States is engaged in intensive dialogue with all countries in the region. "Our goal is clear - to avoid an escalation of the war, which we are convinced is not in anyone's interest - neither the Israeli people nor the Lebanese," Oud said. "We are working with other countries on a proposal that we hope will bring calm and allow a diplomatic solution to be discussed."
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said during the meeting that Lebanon should not be allowed to become a second Gaza.
"Let us say clearly and unanimously: stop the killing and destruction. Tone down the rhetoric and threats. Step back from the gap. The outbreak of a full-scale war must be avoided at all costs," he said.
The growing conflict between Israel and the Lebanese Shiite group “Hezbollah” could lead to a contraction of the Lebanese economy by between 10 and 25 percent, experts predicted before the "National" newspaper, BTA reported.
Lebanon, already suffering the effects of several crises in years of political deadlock and nearly 12 months of fighting between Israel and “Hezbollah”, could be hit by a “severe” deterioration of its economy at the beginning of 2025, Kren Uziyel of the “Economist Intelligence Unit” tells the Emirati edition. (Economist Intelligence Unit - EIU). Analysts had expected a seventh straight year of economic contraction even before Monday's Israeli attacks, the country's heaviest bombing since 2006.
“Lebanon's economy and infrastructure are already so badly hit by the economic crisis and years of political instability and mismanagement that the country does not have the resilience to withstand even a relatively short military campaign of this magnitude,” Uzziel points out. The escalating conflict is likely to exacerbate supply problems and destabilize the Lebanese pound again, leading to a further acceleration in inflation, she added.
“Given the fact that the worst-case scenario happens and Israel goes to war against Lebanon, I expect more serious declines in economic activity in 2024, which could range from 6 to 10 percent depending on the duration and the scale of the war,” states for “National” Nassib Gobril, who is the chief economist of the Beirut banking group “Byblos” (Byblos Bank Group). According to him, as a result of the conflict, consumption will be limited to basic goods, travel will be disrupted, which will affect the tourism industry, investment will further slow, and imports will fall below the level of $17.5 billion in 2023.
According to the former Minister of Economy and Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Lebanon, Nasser Saidi, the possible escalation of the conflict with a ground operation would have catastrophic consequences and lead to a loss of gross domestic product (GDP), exports, foreign direct investment, as well and to a reduction in remittances from Lebanese living abroad. “Further escalation of the war with airstrikes and destruction of infrastructure could cause the economy to shrink by up to 25 percent in 2024,” he thinks.
Lebanon increasingly relies on tourism as a source of foreign currency. Last year's revenue was $5.4 billion, about 25 percent of GDP.
“War is the biggest enemy of tourism. The embassies of a number of countries have warned their citizens to leave Lebanon,” says Pierre Ashkar, who is chairman of the Lebanese Tourism Federation and the Association of Hoteliers. Hotel revenues have decreased by between 80 and 85 percent, and restaurants by 60 percent this year, he points out, adding that hotel rooms are only 10 percent occupied.
Israel's airstrikes against “Hezbollah” rose sharply on Monday, when more than 550 people died, according to Lebanese health authorities. The Iran-backed group, in turn, fired rockets at the Israeli capital Tel Aviv, Haifa and the West Bank.
There is nothing to suggest that Iran is interested in a full-scale conflict in the Middle East, said White House national security spokesman John Kirby, quoted by Reuters and BTA.
Kirby, who made the comment in an interview with "Fox News" television, added that the US has "significant deterrent and offensive capabilities". in the region, and in the last few days these possibilities, according to the American official representative, have been strengthened even more.