After The Freeze! Lebanon-Gulf Diplomacy on Ignition Point

The east is meeting the south again in the Arab world. The drums are hitting hard for a breakthrough in diplomatic relations to be re-established on their normal course with no more headaches. At least this is the theory. However it may now be the practice!

Relations between Lebanon and the Gulf countries are set for the high road after a diplomatic freeze of five months between Beirut and Riyadh, Kuwait, Abu Dhabi and Manama. No more under the table, everything is to be out in the open.

The first to go is expected to be Riyadh. The Saudi ambassador to Lebanon Walid bin Abdullah Bukhari is expected to return to Lebanon by early next week at the start of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. This Saudi action will definitely set the ball rolling for the other Gulf countries to normalize relations.

Media reports are literally going crazy with expectations and their is sense of excitement that the exchange of ambassadors soon, whilst it may not be next week, Gulf-Lebanese relations are for a definite watershed point of pendulum improvement as stamped by the ‘conversation’ between the Kuwaiti Foreign Minister Ahmed Nasser Al-Mohammed Al-Sabah and Najeeb Mikati in Beirut.

The Lebanese premier has promised, he and his government, would do all they can to stop anyone from harming Saudi and Gulf security and deal harshly with the issue of drugs and Captigon tablets leaving their abode and smuggled into Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states.

Further in an open statement that was made public Mikati said:

"I renew the commitment of the Lebanese government to take the necessary and required measures to enhance cooperation with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council, Lebanon’s commitment to all the decisions of the Arab League and international legitimacy, and its commitment to serious and actual work to follow up and complete the implementation of its provisions in a manner that guarantees civil peace and national stability for Lebanon and fortifies its unity."

This latest offering seems to be doing the trick. It is not falling on deaf ears as was the case before but the Gulf now wants to listen. Maybe, it’s because of the international pressure of diplomacy starting from France and its president Emmanuel Macron to the Vatican and Egypt at some stage and the Arab League. They have been pushing for the mending of the broken relations between Lebanon and the Gulf states ever since last October.

These relations were made increasingly sour by the comments of its then Information Minister George Kordahi on Yemen and his support for the Houthis. He has since resigned but the comments, which were made before he became Lebanese minister stuck up like a sore thumb. The Saudis mostly - and Gulf support for Riyadh’s stance - registered much anger and brought up other issues that they were upset about including Hizbollah’s role and influence in the country.

In turn this produced a complex, intractable situation including for Macron, who visited the region as well as Saudi Arabia as a mediator to fix things but the wells of diplomacy have  taken much time to heal. At least, all this trotting will not go to waste not and certainly not water under the bridge.

Aside from this, everyone in Lebanon is waiting, for with this new diplomatic rapport Saudi Arabia promised it will establish a fund to aid the country out of its intractable economic crisis that keeps getting deeper and deeper.