Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry met with Walid Jumblatt, head of the Progressive Socialist Party (PSP), on the sidelines of the Arab Economic Summit in Beirut.
According to the Lebanese National News Agency, Shoukry met Jumblatt in the presence of former Lebanese Minister Ghazi Aridi and PSP Vice President Duraid Yaghi.
Shoukry arrived in Lebanon on Friday evening, where he was received by the Lebanese President Michel Aoun as part of his visit to Lebanese capital Beirut to participate in the fourth Arab Economic Development Summit.
Alongside Aoun, Shoukry met with Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri and Lebanese Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri.
“The meeting I held today with Prime Minister Hariri was a positive one. We addressed all Arab and regional issues in detail, in addition to bilateral relations,” the Foreign Minister said after the meeting.
“On the Lebanese front, I emphasized the Egyptian position, which supports Lebanon’s security and stability, as well a, the formation of a Lebanese consensual government as soon as possible. And this is not because it is an external request, but rather because it achieves the interest of Lebanon and the Lebanese people first,” Shoukry said.
“On the other hand, Lebanon has a responsibility to contribute to stability in the Arab region. This happens through achieving stability in Lebanon, which will not happen without the formation of a government. And I have praised the continued efforts exerted by the Prime Minister-designate to achieve this,” he added.
Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
