Lebanon will ask Saudi Arabia to resume a $3 billion aid package to the Lebanese army which was halted in 2016 after Beirut failed to condemn attacks on the Kingdom's diplomatic missions in Tehran, Lebanon's president said on Friday.
Joseph Aoun, Lebanon’s former army chief, will meet Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Monday in his first foreign trip as president.
The US and Arab-backed president has expressed a desire for the Lebanese state to have a monopoly on weapons after Iran-back Hezbollah was mauled in a 15-month war with Israel.
A financial endorsement from Riyadh could further solidify Lebanon’s alignment away from Tehran.
Aoun said he would ask Saudi Arabia "if it is possible to reactivate the grant," in an interview with Riyadh-based television Asharq.
"I hope and I await from Saudi Arabia - and especially the Crown Prince - to correct the relationship in the interests of both countries," Aoun added.
Saudi Arabia halted the aid package—originally intended to supply the Lebanese army with French weapons—after pro-Islamic Republic vigilantes stormed and set fire to the Saudi embassy in Tehran and consulate in Mashhad in January 2016.
The attacks came in response to Saudi Arabia’s execution of prominent Shia cleric Nimr al-Nimr, prompting Riyadh to sever diplomatic ties with Tehran.
Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei called the execution of Nimr "a political mistake and a great sin."
Hezbollah's former Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah also condemned the execution, describing it as a "heinous crime."
In 2021, Iraq initiated a mediatory effort to reconcile Tehran and Riadh which led to an agreement in March 2023 to resume their diplomatic relations.
