Lebanon's Political Landscape: Presidential Prospects and Central Bank Governance in the Spotlight

The temperature of the weather does not match the heat of the actual communications to address the major crises plaguing the country.

Following the information received in Beirut about the meeting of the Quintet in Doha, foreign efforts have granted an additional three months to find a solution. French envoy Jean-Yves Le Drian is expected to arrive in Beirut tomorrow and head directly to Ain al-Tineh to meet with Speaker Nabih Berri and discuss the issue of national dialogue regarding the presidential file.

Insiders say that France does not have specific and quick visions to address the crisis, and the other parties in the Quintet are each relying on changes in the stances of internal Lebanese parties.

This article was originally published in, translated from Lebanese newspaper al-Akhbar.

There are no strong indicators of this, and the only serious event is related to the ongoing dialogue between Hezbollah and the Free Patriotic Movement.

Despite the significant secrecy surrounding the discussions between the two sides, information indicates that the new factor is dropping the precondition of discussing the names of the presidential candidates by both parties. Hezbollah is reportedly considering the opinion of the Free Patriotic Movement regarding the presidential file in light of the results of the June 14 session, while the Free Patriotic Movement is awaiting a response from Hezbollah regarding their request to work towards an option beyond the two candidates who were voted on in the mentioned session, noting that Hezbollah is still adhering to its candidate, Sleiman Frangieh.

In the meantime, informed sources pointed out that external efforts are being made with former MP Walid Jumblatt. It is worth noting that he has recently been redirecting those who contact him to his son, MP Taymour Jumblatt. The sources stated that the foreign party communicating with the Jumblatt team on the presidential file is Russia, which has informed several Arab capitals concerned with Lebanon of its support for Frangieh's presidency.

The sources also revealed that Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov had raised the issue in a previous meeting with his Saudi counterpart, Prince Faisal bin Farhan, delivering a direct message from President Vladimir Putin to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. According to the sources, Moscow has not received any Saudi response to its proposal. Still, it considers that the dialogue with Jumblatt can create a significant breakthrough.

On another note, discussions are still ongoing on the Central Bank's governorship issue. The last week of Riad Salameh's term begins today, and he and his supporters have lost hope of any chance of his reappointment or extension or linking his fate to appointing a new governor.

In this context, Speaker Berri reportedly stated that the idea of a technical extension for Salameh or even his reappointment or assignment to carry out the duties is an impossible idea that no one can bear. He reiterated that "the best option is for the four deputies to resign and take over the facility's administration until the appointment of a new governor and new deputies at a later stage."

On the other hand, Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati is set to meet with the four Central Bank deputies today at their request. Mikati is considering the idea of a trade-off with the deputies, wherein they do not resign in exchange for the government taking appropriate actions to cover their work legally. It should be noted that these deputies may not resign, as sources close to them have stated that First Deputy Wassim Mansouri is the most willing to resign since he will assume the governor's powers. However, the other three reject this for personal, political, or partisan reasons.

Insders confirmed that the four deputies still insist on obtaining guarantees, including legislating state financing with a law, restructuring, and capital controls, and taking appropriate action regarding the Sayrafa platform.

There is also an additional issue: the lack of homogeneity among them. Some are trying to exploit the situation to market themselves politically and try to attract some opposition and change MPs by stressing during the Administration and Justice Committee the need to implement everything demanded by the International Monetary Fund.

The sources pointed out that Mikati will listen to the deputies of the Central Bank and present their views to the Council of Ministers in today's session or allocate another session for this.

They also mentioned that some ideas are being discussed between Mikati and political forces regarding the possibility of the government sending what the Central Bank deputies have requested through a draft law to be submitted by the government and approved in the Parliament.