Following his visit to Washington and meeting with U.S. President Joe Biden, and after a stop in Qatar to attend the World Cup matches featuring the French national team, French President Emmanuel Macron will visit the Jordanian capital, Amman, from the 20th to the 22nd of this month to participate in the Baghdad 2 Conference, where regional issues are expected to be discussed, provided there is something that can be presented with American approval.
Political analyst Dr. Khaled Al-Azi confirms to "Al-Markazia" that “Macron is not well-regarded locally or internationally and is unpopular in Europe, even though France, unfortunately, is the only country representing Europe’s voice because it is a member of the European Union and has its voice in the United Nations, and its policies are poor regarding Middle Eastern issues.”
Regarding the hopes pinned on Macron concerning the Lebanese file, he states: “He neither gains nor loses; the problem does not lie with him. He is trying to forge any agreements that might restore his role and benefit Iran. We saw how hurriedly he signed a $23 billion deal with Total for Iran in Iraq following the Beirut port explosion,” pointing out that “France plays a negative role toward its colonies, as evidenced by what it did in Algeria, Africa, Mali, and also in Armenia and Ukraine, down to Lebanon, where its decision is not supported. What has it done in Iraq, and what has it provided for the Iranian uprising? Nothing.”
Al-Azi adds: “France does not do like other Europeans by placing the political wing of Hezbollah on the terrorist list, engages in agreements with Hezbollah, and meets with its ministers and MPs through French Ambassador Anne Grillo, out of consideration for Iran. The proof is the contract given to French company Total to explore for oil in the south and the role it will play as a link between Israel and Lebanon. France aims to open investments in Iran to support its ailing economy!”
He continues: “The Lebanese entity is undergoing a crisis, and the problem of the Maronites in Lebanon is that a group among them advocates for the concept of minorities, which undermines Lebanon rather than embracing a power-sharing concept. The head of the Free Patriotic Movement, MP Gibran Bassil, is seeking the presidency and has turned to France for this purpose, but the French have nothing to offer. France acts as a mailbox executing what the West desires, and thus all its initiatives fall flat, even the initiative undertaken by the Swiss ambassador to gather leaders around a dialogue table which was at the directive of France. Switzerland also protects the interests of Israel and the United States in Iran; therefore, the ambassador was tasked with overseeing a dialogue table in agreement with France, which tries to convey to the Americans that ‘I can produce a solution in Lebanon,’ but this solution, throughout history, has never been produced by France, from Lausanne to Geneva to San-Clou, up to the Macronian activities following the port explosion. The nurturing mother is the one that cares, while France does not fund Lebanon economically, touristically, or diplomatically.”
He considers that “Lebanon is nothing without the Arabs, because we are part of the Arabs, and all our interests and businesses are in Arab countries, evidenced by the entire collapse we have experienced over the past six years, which still stems from the Arabs’ distancing from Lebanon, as the presidency acted as a mailbox for Hezbollah and Iran against the Arabs. In addition to the American role, because the solution still remains in the hands of the United States, if the latter does not approve of any agreements regarding selling or buying, nothing will materialize. The French have no plan to offer Lebanon, hence the French-American-Saudi tripartite statement, which gave a role to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in Lebanon, noting that ‘Saudi Arabia cannot cover for France to establish a new settlement by selecting any president who does not consider the Arab interests in Lebanon and does not rescue Lebanon from the economic collapse or use Lebanon as a platform as it was used in 2016 to fight the Arab states and provoke Lebanon against these countries.’
As for his visit to Amman, it is to bless the demarcation of borders and send a message to the Arabs indicating that this step had a fundamental role for France and significant support, and that Total will have the guaranteed role in the process of extracting oil.”
