Prince Khalid al-Faisal in Lebanon

11 December 2016

By Tariq Alhomayed

In a remarkable move, Governor of Makkah Prince Khalid bin Faisal bin Abdulaziz, advisor to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques visited Lebanon and carried with him a congratulatory message from King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud to Lebanon's new President Michel Aoun.

Al-Faisal said in Beirut that he was carrying two messages to Aoun. The first was congratulating him on being elected as president of Lebanon, and the second was an invitation to pay a visit to the Kingdom.

Al-Faisal also said that President Aoun promised him that he will pay this visit directly after the formation of the Cabinet.

The reader here might question the reasons behind describing this visit as remarkable and important while the answer is simply because it came following speculations that Saudi Arabia has disengaged from Lebanon.

This is what many Lebanese politicians have been convinced with and what those – who believe that Saudi Arabia has gone too far in the Lebanese file – have been promoting for.

Therefore, this visit carries many important implications as it came at a high level since Prince Khalid al-Faisal is a prominent figure and is the advisor to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, which means that Saudi Arabia did not disengage itself from Lebanon.

Saudi Arabia, as a country, would never retreat – and politics in general is an art where there is no place for rupture; even in crises and wars communication still takes place either directly among countries or through mediators.

This does not reflect any weakness; instead, this communication remains in order to achieve desired goals.

Notably, Saudi Arabia's major targets, since its establishment, are to deepen stability and peace in the region.

The other important thing about al-Faisal's visit was the fact that it was culminated by meeting leaders of the Lebanese institutions instead of meeting the different Lebanese parties.

Saudi Arabia is a state and it deals with other countries according the concept of the state. This is what Prince Khalid did when he met with President Aoun, Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, Prime Minister Tammam Salam and Prime Minister designate Saad al-Hariri.

Therefore, Prince al-Faisal's visit to Lebanon is important and considered as a good indicator because neglecting Lebanon is wrong no matter how many crises it passes through.

We have to remember that by communicating with Lebanon, Saudi Arabia's goal is not the conflict or the imposition of predominance; it is, instead, a victory for the concept of the state, especially in geographical borders witnessing crises in the region, and Lebanon is the center.

This is what al-Faisal assured in Beirut as he clearly said that Saudi Arabia and Saudis do not want Lebanon to be ''an arena for Arab conflict but a meeting place for Arab accord.''

This could only be achieved by communication and political tireless hard work.

Construction is way harder than destruction; this is why the mission of wise countries in the region, headed by Saudi Arabia, is more difficult from that of the saboteurs, headed by Iran.

Tariq Alhomayed is the former editor-in-chief of Asharq Al-Awsat. Mr. Alhomyed has been a guest analyst and commentator on numerous news and current affair programs, and during his distinguished career has held numerous positions at Asharq Al-Awsat, amongst other newspapers. Notably, he was the first journalist to interview Osama Bin Ladin's mother. Mr. Alhomayed holds a bachelor's degree in media studies from King Abdul Aziz University in Jeddah. He is based in London. 

©  EsinIslam.Com

Add Comments