French president claims credit for getting Lebanese PM Hariri out of Saudi Arabia last year
Tehran (KNA) - French President Emmanuel Macron has publicly admitted that Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri had been “held” last November in Riyadh, where he abruptly announced his resignation live on Saudi TV, claiming his mediation efforts played a decisive role in resolving the political crisis back then.
In an interview with French broadcaster BFM TV on Monday, Macron, whose country maintains close ties with Lebanon as a former colony, claimed credit for the settlement of that political turmoil.
"I remind you that a prime minister was held in Saudi Arabia for several weeks," Macron said.The French president said that his unscheduled stopover in Riyadh back then to convince Saudi leaders, followed by an invitation to Hariri to come to France, had prevented an escalation.
"If France wasn't listened to then, there probably would be a war in Lebanon at this moment as we speak. It's French diplomacy, it's our action," he claimed.
Hariri returned to Lebanon in early December 2017 after his visit to Paris and rescinded his resignation.
Source: PressTV