Paris:  As France looks for a fresh push to end a political crisis that has left the country without a president for more than six months, President Emmanuel Macron's new special envoy for Lebanon will travel to Beirut in the coming week, a diplomatic source said.

The source told AFP, on condition of anonymity, that former foreign minister Jean-Yves Le Drian, who was appointed by Macron to the position earlier this month, will travel to Beirut on Wednesday.

Le Drian would depart on Wednesday, according to a second source familiar with the situation, but it was unclear how long he would stay in Beirut or who he would meet.

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His visit comes after Lebanese lawmakers failed to elect a new president for the 12th time last week, a situation that is increasing frustration in Paris as the nation struggles with an economic and financial crisis.

The former colonial master, France, still holds some sway in Lebanon, but it must compete with a number of other nations, most notably Saudi Arabia, which has clout among the Sunni population, and Iran, which can rely on the Hezbollah, a Shiite movement backed by Tehran.

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Last October, former president Michel Aoun's term came to an end without a candidate in place. Now, due to the acrimonious differences between Hezbollah and its rivals, Lebanon runs the risk of becoming mired in a protracted power vacuum at the worst possible time.
Following their Friday meeting, Macron and Mohammed bin Salman, the crown prince of Saudi Arabia, urged a "rapid end to the institutional political vacuum in Lebanon."

According to the French presidency, the prolonged absence of a president "remains the main obstacle to resolving the country's severe socio-economic crisis."

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Observers praised Macron for travelling to Beirut soon after the deadly 2020 port explosion to pressure Lebanon's leaders into radical reform.

But he is under pressure right now to keep his word. Le Drian is a political powerhouse who previously served as defence minister and as foreign minister during Macron's first term in office.