If (and it’s a big if) President Emmanuel Macron is serious about leading an international effort to support Lebanon’s political reform, he should find U.S. support.
Visiting Beirut on Thursday, Macron sought to comfort a people who have just suffered a great loss. Tuesday’s explosion of an ammonium nitrate storage facility killed nearly 150 people, injuring thousands more. Situating himself in the middle of an emotional crowd (a favorite Macron maneuver, albeit not one his security detail particularly appreciates), the president pledged, “I want to organize European cooperation, and more broadly international cooperation.” As reported by Le Monde, Macron pledged to persuade Lebanese politicians “to carry out reforms … to change the system, to stop the division of Lebanon, to fight against corruption.”
