Qatar to support Lebanon after formation of new government

Qatar's prime minister has said that his country would support Lebanese institutions and work on mutual projects after the formation of a Lebanese government.

In a press conference in Beirut following a meeting with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun on Tuesday, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al Thani said Qatar would continue supporting the Lebanese army.

Qatar has been providing the Lebanese army with grants for fuel and salaries. Lebanon needs foreign funds to help meet a huge reconstruction bill from last year's war, in which Israeli air strikes flattened swathes of the country.

"We are looking forward to the formation of the government and after that will look at a strategic partnership based on mutual interest," Al Thani said.

"The indicators since the beginning of the year have been positive, whether it is filling the (Lebanese) presidential vacuum or the change that happened in Syria."

As well as meeting Aoun, who was elected president in early January, Thani met caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati, Prime Minister-elect Nawaf Salam and parliament speaker Nabih Berri.

Salam, a judge who had been serving as the head of the International Court of Justice, was nominated on January 13 to form Lebanon's new cabinet.