Description: French President Emmanuel Macron has conducted a meeting with newly – elected Lebanese President Joseph Aoun. Macron urged on rapid withdrawal from the Israeli army still deployed on Lebanese territory and emphasized the need for Lebanon to reestablish a sovereign governance and independent military apparatus. He had also announced that France would host an international reconstruction conference for Lebanon since severe investments were necessary to rebuild the Lebanese infrastructure.
Impact: Macron’s visit to Lebanon only enhances the country’s geopolitical attractiveness at the moment. Macron’s visit also aimed to represent added value to French regional diplomacy efforts in terms of securing the French mediated withdrawal of Israeli troops. Lebanon seems to be in the founding stages of restructuring and should carefully choose its allies in order to avoid becoming a buffer zone between terrorist groups such as Hamas and Hezbollah and the Israeli army.