WANA (Dec 13) – The Lebanese newspaper Al-Akhbar claimed that Lebanon’s Foreign Minister has effectively halted the process of accrediting Iran’s new ambassador by refusing to complete the required legal procedures.

 

According to Al-Akhbar on Saturday, after the appointment of Ahmad Suwaydan as Lebanon’s ambassador to Iran last October, Tehran, following standard diplomatic protocol, sent the name of its proposed ambassador to Lebanon. However, the process has reportedly faced obstacles at the Lebanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

 

The newspaper alleged that Foreign Minister Youssef Raggi has kept the proposed Iranian ambassador’s credentials in his office without following legal procedures and has not submitted them to the Cabinet. This, the report said, violates Lebanese diplomatic and administrative regulations.

 

Al-Akhbar further claimed that Raggi has neither forwarded a copy of the ambassador’s credentials to the presidential palace nor formally communicated Lebanon’s approval to Tehran, effectively preventing the new ambassador from assuming office in Beirut.

 

Citing informed sources, the newspaper added that the move reflects a political decision at the level of the Lebanese Forces party, to which the foreign minister adheres. The sources said the aim is to escalate political confrontation with Iran and push bilateral relations toward a diplomatic crisis.

 

In recent days, messages between the foreign ministers of Iran and Lebanon have also circulated in the media and on social networks regarding bilateral relations. In one message, Iran’s Foreign Minister, Seyed Abbas Araghchi, addressed Lebanese Foreign Minister Youssef Raggi, emphasizing Iran’s non-interference in Lebanon’s internal affairs and inviting him to visit Tehran. In response, Raggi stated that he is currently unable to travel to Iran but is willing to meet his Iranian counterpart in a third country.

 

Raggi further stressed Lebanon’s “full readiness to establish a new phase of constructive relations with Iran based on mutual respect.”

 

Last night, Araghchi responded to the Lebanese foreign minister on X (formerly Twitter), writing: “I appreciate Mr. Youssef Raggi’s kind invitation. At the same time, his decision not to accept Iran’s reciprocal invitation, following the warm hospitality extended to me during my previous visit to Lebanon, is surprising. It is clear that foreign ministers of countries with fraternal ties and full diplomatic relations do not need a ‘neutral’ location to meet.”

 

Araghchi added, “Considering the Israeli occupation in Lebanon and the blatant violations of the ceasefire, I fully understand why my esteemed Lebanese counterpart is not ready to travel to Tehran. Therefore, I gladly accept his invitation to visit Beirut. We, too, seek a ‘new chapter’ in bilateral relations—relations based on the very principles that Minister Raggi has emphasized.”

A billboard with a picture of the late Lebanon's Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah is displayed on a building, after the IRGC attack on Israel

A billboard with a picture of the late leader of Lebanon’s Hezbollah, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, is displayed on a building, after the IRGC attack on Israel, in Tehran, Iran, October 1, 2024. Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency)