Asiri Throws Support behind Salam amid Resignation Rumors

Saudi Ambassador to Lebanon Ali Awadh Asiri has said he informed Prime Minister Tammam Salam that Riyadh is keen on Lebanon's constitutional institutions after reports that the PM was mulling to resign.

In remarks to al-Joumhouria daily published Wednesday, Asiri said: “I stressed to him (Salam) that the Kingdom is keen on the continued functioning of state institutions, chiefly the premiership.”

The diplomat visited Salam at the Grand Serail on Tuesday.

He expressed hope that all political parties would cooperate to resolve issues wisely.

Asiri said he wanted to “see positive results that serve Lebanon’s interest and its stability.”

Lebanon’s political crisis, which erupted after the end of the term of President Michel Suleiman in May last year, worsened earlier this month after the Free Patriotic Movement called for changing the cabinet's decision-making mechanism.

The mechanism was adopted after the government assumed the responsibilities of the head of state in his absence.

The cabinet crisis was coupled with a waste management problem that erupted on July 17 following the closure of the landfill that lies in the town of Naameh south of Beirut.

The deadlock caused Salam to mull a resignation. He postponed a cabinet session to Thursday to pave way for more consultations after coming under pressure by Speaker Nabih Berri and Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblat.