French president in Lebanon to back new leadership

France's President Emmanuel Macron arrived in Beirut on Friday for a visit that will see him meet his counterpart and offer support. After more than two years of a political vacuum at the top, Joseph Aoun was elected President on January 9 and chose Nawaf Salam as the Prime Minister-Designate.

Macron is also expected to meet UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in the Lebanese capital as a January 26 deadline to fully implement an Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire deal approaches. Macron's visit aims to "help" Aoun and Salam "to consolidate Lebanon's sovereignty, ensure its prosperity and maintain its unity", the French presidency said prior to his arrival.

France has special ties with Lebanon, which it administered for two decades after World War I.