AOUN Welcomes Envoy of Emir of Qatar, Foresees Promising Summer Season Involving Gulf Tourists

17 May 2019

Lebanon- President of the Republic, General Michel Aoun, expressed his hope that "in the coming months Qatari citizens will return to Lebanon to spend the summer vacation with their brothers, the sons of the Gulf."

"Reservations in hotels and tourist establishments point to a promising season of hospitality," he said.

Receiving the Qatari Emir's envoy, Qatar's Minister of State Hamad bin Abdul Aziz Al-Kuwari, Aoun discussed the Lebanese-Qatari relations and the support provided by the Emir of Qatar to Lebanon, especially by personally participating in the Economic and Social Development Conference held back in January.

The President of the Republic thanked the Emir and the people of Qatar for the care provided to Lebanese expatriates residing in Qatar, and praised their efforts for the development of the Qatari economy.

President Aoun handed the minister a copy of his initiative submitted to the United Nations with the request to establish a "Human Academy for Encounter and Dialogue" in Lebanon.

Al-Kuwari relayed to Aoun the condolences of the Emir of Qatar on the passing of Patriarch Cardinal Mar Nasrallah Boutros Sfeir. He pointed out that his representation to the Emir of Qatar in Sfeir's funeral yesterday "is to indicate the strength of Lebanese-Qatari relations, which Qatar is keen to develop and bolster in all fields."

Separately, President Aoun met with the Minister of National Defense, Elias Bou Saab, who briefed him on the results of his meeting yesterday night with Minister of Interior and Municipalities Raya al-Hassan and a number of officers, to discuss the appropriations of the Ministries of Defense and Interior.