The prime minister-designate began putting together a government he said will have the chief goal of organizing crucial parliament elections before a May 31 deadline in an effort to end Lebanon's long political crisis.
Najib Mikati, a telecommunications tycoon who has close links with Syrian President Bashar Assad, said he was to meet with President Emile Lahoud yesterday and that he intends to announce a government as soon as possible.
That formula would satisfy the anti-Syrian opposition, which has for weeks sought a neutral Cabinet focused solely on calling the election. The opposition wants the polls to be held on time because it is confident of winning a majority in the 128-member parliament, ending the domination by pro-Syrian factions.
Lebanon has had no government since Feb. 28, raising fears of a delay in elections that are supposed to take place before the current parliament's mandate expires May 31.
Meanwhile, lawmaker Bassem Fleihan, who was badly wounded in the Feb. 14 blast that killed former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, died Monday at a Paris military hospital where he was being treated, making him the 21st victim of the bombing. He was 41.
Mikati, who was invited by Lahoud on Friday to form a government, consulted with legislators on the formation of a new Cabinet, meeting first with Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, then with other lawmakers, including opposition members.
Speaking to reporters after consultations ended, Mikati said he was leaning toward a small Cabinet with ministers who were not running for election.
The main goal of the Cabinet "will be passing the election law and holding general elections within the constitutional time-frame," he said. It was the first time Mikati, who had earlier said he wanted elections "as soon as possible," specifically mentioned the May 31 deadline.
A ship that appears to be taking on the identity of a scrapped gas carrier exited the Strait of Hormuz on Friday, showing how strategies to get through the waterway are evolving as the Middle East war progresses. The vessel identifying as liquefied natural gas (LNG) carrier Jamal left the Strait on Friday morning, ship-tracking data show. However, the same tanker was also recorded as having beached at an Indian demolition yard in October last year, where it is being broken up, according to market participants and port agent’s reports. The ship claiming to be Jamal is likely a zombie vessel that
Japan is to downgrade its description of ties with China from “one of its most important” in an annual diplomatic report, according to a draft reviewed by Reuters, as relations with Beijing worsen. This year’s Diplomatic Bluebook, which Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s government is expected to approve next month, would instead describe China as an important neighbor and the relationship as “strategic” and “mutually beneficial.” The draft cites a series of confrontations with Beijing over the past year, including export controls on rare earths, radar lock-ons targeting Japanese military aircraft and increased pressure around Taiwan. The shift in tone underscores a deterioration
LAW CONSTRAINTS: The US has been pressing allies to send warships to open the Strait, but Tokyo’s military actions are limited under its postwar pacifist constitution Japan could consider deploying its military for minesweeping in the Strait of Hormuz if a ceasefire is reached in the war on Iran, Japanese Minister of Foreign Affairs Toshimitsu Motegi said yesterday. “If there were to be a complete ceasefire, hypothetically speaking, then things like minesweeping could come up,” Motegi said. “This is purely hypothetical, but if a ceasefire were established and naval mines were creating an obstacle, then I think that would be something to consider.” Japan’s military actions are limited under its postwar pacifist constitution, but 2015 security legislation allows Tokyo to use its Self-Defense Forces overseas if an attack,
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU) yesterday faced a regional election battle in Rhineland-Palatinate, now held by the center-left Social Democratic Party (SPD). Merz’s CDU has enjoyed a narrow poll lead over the SPD — their coalition partners at the national level — who have ruled the mid-sized state for 35 years. Polling third is the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD), which spells a greater threat to the two centrist parties in several state elections in September in the country’s ex-communist east. The picturesque state of Rhineland-Palatinate, bordering France, Belgium and Luxembourg and with a population of about 4 million,
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