Aoun Wants a "Thirty-Minister" Government Formation

The "second meeting for the formation" between President Michel Aoun and designated Prime Minister Najib Mikati lasted no more than fifteen minutes yesterday. During this time, Mikati heard Aoun's observations on the draft cabinet he presented earlier in the week. It was decided that both would continue their consultations and communications in preparation for returning to meet again early next week to continue the discussion. After leaving the Baabda Palace "without a statement," a well-informed source told "Nidaa al-Watan" that Mikati and Aoun discussed the matter of making some amendments to the proposed cabinet. The President emphasized the necessity of maintaining the distribution of portfolios as they are in the current caretaker government and that the rotation should not be limited to one specific portfolio (i.e., the Ministry of Energy) but should be more comprehensive across all portfolios. At the same time, he expressed a preference to expand the new government formation to thirty ministers by adding six ministerial posts for politicians, in the event that the designated Prime Minister rejects supplementing the proposed twenty-four minister government with political ministers.