by Dana Halawi
BEIRUT, Sept. 4 (Xinhua) -- Economic and geopolitical factors stand behind the two visits of French President Emmanuel Macron to Lebanon following Beirut port's explosions, experts said.
Macron visited Lebanon on Aug. 6, two days following the blasts which killed around 191 people and wounded at least 6,500 others. He paid another visit to Lebanon on Sept. 1 where he met with Lebanese officials and representatives of the civil society, vowing to hold an aid conference for Lebanon by mid-October on condition that local authorities achieve the required structural reforms within eight weeks.
Hilal Kashan, chair of the Political Studies Department at the American University of Beirut, told Xinhua that France has a "moral commitment" toward Lebanon.
Khashan explained that the French were given by the Ottoman Empire a concession in Lebanon to protect the Maronite sect while France created Greater Lebanon after World War I.
"France has a genuine interest in Lebanon. Every French president has previously shown a keen interest in Lebanon not to forget that our country has a francophone character," Khashan said.
Khashan noted that geopolitical factors also stand behind France's interest in Lebanon.
"Turkey is expanding in the region and one of the objectives of France is to stop Turkish advancement in the Middle East. Lebanon here is a central country for the French in their efforts to fight against Turkish influence," he said.
Khashan explained that the United States is leaving the Middle East and no Arab country can fill the vacuum created by the departure of the Americans.
"Iran and Turkey are trying to fill this gap knowing that Turkey is establishing itself in Akkar and Tripoli by involving itself in aid programs in northern Lebanon. Also, Turkey has deals with the Iraqi Kurdistan, and Libya while they are also collaborating with Ethiopians on the issue of the controversial Renaissance Dam," Khashan added.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan criticized his French counterpart following Macron's first visit to Lebanon by accusing him of "putting on a show," and aiming "to bring back a colonialist structure."
Erdogan's remarks also came following Macron's announcement that France plans to strengthen its military presence in the Eastern Mediterranean region with the cooperation of European partners, including Greece which has seen rise in tension with Turkey since Ankara resumed energy exploration on Aug. 10.
Rafic Nasrallah, director of the Lebanese International Center for Media and Research, told Xinhua that France is looking for an economic and strategic role in Lebanon besides its aim to prevent Turkey's expansion in the region.
"France knows through its oil and gas companies that Lebanon's oil and gas wealth is estimated at hundreds of billions of dollars, and its presence in Lebanon guarantees a share of this wealth," he said.
Nasrallah added that France does not want Lebanon to collapse which would give Hezbollah more dominance over Lebanon's governmental institutions.
"France believes that if Lebanese governmental institutions collapse, Hezbollah will become more powerful since it is the biggest organized power in the country and it has strong financial capabilities," he said.
Amin Hoteit, instructor and researcher at Al Maaref University, also said that France aims to prevent Hezbollah from filling the gap that would be created if the country collapses entirely.
Hoteit also noted that France and all of Europe fear the collapse of Lebanon which would prompt Syrian and Palestinian refugees to leave the country for the West, threatening European security and economy.
Lebanon has been going through its worst economic and financial crisis amid shortage in U.S. dollar and the weakening of the local currency which led to the rise in unemployment and poverty rates.
The country has so far not been able to unlock funds by the International Monetary Fund due to its lack of efforts in implementing necessary reforms.
France is trying to push Lebanese officials to implement reforms in the electricity, banking sectors and the fight against corruption to unlock aid by the international community and save the country from further collapse. Enditem
