Within the activities of the Rome Mediterranean Conference, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Emigrants Abdullah Bou Habib was a guest in a dialogue session attended by a number of UN, European and Arab officials, during which he gave a presentation on the situation in Lebanon and the region.

Bou Habib listed the government’s priorities, which focus on negotiations with the IMF and reforms, especially in the electricity and banking sector, and holding parliamentary elections.

Minister Bou Habib also tackled Lebanon’s relations with Arab countries, especially the Gulf states, stressing “Lebanon’s Arab identity and the government’s commitment to a policy of disassociation from crises in the region.”

The Minister met the High Representative for Foreign Policy and Security Affairs of the European Union, Josep Borrell, to discuss the aid that the Union is currently providing to Lebanon.

Borrell stressed the need to carry out reforms to benefit from financial support, within the framework of a program with the International Monetary Fund.

The pair also discussed the issue of Syrian displaced and its impact on the internal Lebanese situation, economically, security and socially, and the need to find new approaches to solve it.