It is clear that the French presidential envoy, Jean-Yves Le Drian, did not make any notable breakthrough in the Lebanese presidential file, as each party is clinging to its positions.

This prompted Le Drian to warn the officials he met that Lebanon’s political existence was in danger, with the continued rift in the country.

He warned during his meetings in Beirut about the risks of prolonging the crisis amid the tense regional context and stressed the urgent need to elect a president without delay.

So, the French envoy did not succeed once again in his latest mission in Lebanon, which he left yesterday without his efforts yielding a breakthrough in the ongoing presidential election crisis for a year and a half.

So, are there repercussions for this new failure on the French level?

Diplomatic circles believed that no one expected a breakthrough from his visit, as the positions remained the same, but the visit was part of the efforts to resolve major issues and conflicts, reaching a time to push the solution forward. The visit is part of a diligent international effort to resolve, and Le Drian said he came to accelerate solving the presidential file as an integral part of the five-member committee's work.

The circles noted that the timing of the visit came, as the French presidential envoy Jean-Yves Le Drian personally stated, to submit his report before the meeting between Presidents Biden and Macron in France on June 6 on the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the Normandy landing. His report will be present in framing the joint position that will be issued from the summit.

One of the possible outcomes is the issuance of a declaration that those who do not want to cooperate in the Lebanese presidential file will face sanctions. This brings to mind the meeting between Presidents George W. Bush and Jacques Chirac in 2004, which resulted in Resolution 1559 leading to the withdrawal of Syrian troops from Lebanon the following year. A historic position may be issued from the upcoming summit.

Diplomatic circles considered that the opposition is now backed into a corner in the presidential file. Between the last statement of the Quintet Committee and Le Drian's movements, it has become clear who is obstructing the consultation mechanisms and insisting on an unconstitutional dialogue and who is refusing the open parliamentary session with successive rounds and sticking to their presidential candidate while rejecting the discussion of a third option.

Thus, there is an international development at this level based on the quintet committee's belief and the results of Jean-Yves Le Drian’s recent visit that the party obstructing the presidential entitlement is the opposing team that says one thing in closed rooms and practices something else in reality.

This article was initially published in Arabic in Nidaa Al-Watan newspaper, translated by Christina Rai.