Le Drian to visit Lebanon and Quint to meet within weeks, reports say

The ambassadors of the five-nation group for Lebanon - the United States, France, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Qatar - will meet within two weeks to discuss the presidential impasse, diplomatic sources told local al-Liwaa newspaper.

The sources added, in remarks published Tuesday, that French special envoy to Lebanon Jean-Yves Le Drian will likely visit Lebanon at the end of the month or in early October and that mid-September will witness intense efforts to break the presidential deadlock.

The sources also mentioned a political effort to gather a parliamentary majority of 86 representatives to hold consultations or dialogue sessions in Parliament, despite the Lebanese opposition's decision to boycott the dialogue.

Pro-Hezbollah al-Akhbar newspaper had reported Monday that the Quintet has returned the Lebanese presidential file to the spotlight through a Saudi-French coordination and a series of meetings aimed at "convincing the parties to go to dialogue".

Al-Akhbar said Le Drian will soon meet with Royal Court adviser Nizar al-Aloula in Riyadh in the presence of Saudi and French Ambassadors to Lebanon Walid Bukhari and Hervé Magro. The Saudi-French meeting will be held this week in Riyad, Annahar newspaper quoted circles close to Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri as saying, while Kuwaiti al-Anbaa newspaper said the meeting will discuss ways to reconcile viewpoints between the Lebanese parties, especially Berri and Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea.