BEIRUT: Prime minister-designate Saad Hariri launched on Thursday what are expected to be arduous talks with Lebanon’s various political parties in his second bid to form a government since a June election.
Hariri, 39, began his consultations by meeting with parliament speaker Nabih Berri, whose Amal party is in the opposition.
He was then to hold a series of meetings until next Tuesday with other politicians and legislators, including members of the militant group Hezbollah, which heads the opposition bloc supported by Syria and Iran.
Hariri abandoned his first bid to form a national unity cabinet earlier this month after failing to secure backing for a proposed line-up from opponents, who are insisting on having a say in who heads each ministry.
He was reappointed to the post, reserved for a Sunni Muslim, last week.
Analysts say his renewed efforts are likely to prove fruitless barring a thaw in ties between regional powerbrokers.
Paul Salem, who heads the Beirut-based Carnegie Middle East Center, said even though both sides are holding their ground and difficulties lie ahead, there was still hope of a breakthrough in coming weeks.
“Even a brief meeting (between Siniora and Assad) is helpful as it calms tension and indicates a new orientation,” he told AFP. “The obstacles are still there and they are more difficult than in the first round ... so I don’t see an easy outlet,” Salem added. But he downplayed the possibility of renewed violence and said Hariri’s second bid may well succeed.
“I’m fairly expecting that in the next few weeks something will move, with an external push,” he said.
The United Nations too has expressed concern over Lebanon’s inability to form a government, especially as the tiny Mediterranean country is set to take over a rotating seat in the Security Council next year. “This is a very important role for Lebanon, which requires a fully functioning government that can follow up on many important international issues,” UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon Michael Williams said this week.
Hariri, the son of assassinated billionaire ex-premier Rafik Hariri, was first appointed on June 27, three weeks after the legislative election.
But he stepped down after failing to secure backing for a proposed line-up that would have included 15 ministers from his camp, 10 from the opposition and five to be appointed by the president.
It was unclear whether he planned to stick to the same formula this time around. The political standoff has sparked fears of a new crisis in Lebanon, which came close to civil war last year following a protracted political crisis that ended following a Qatari-brokered deal.
