Lebanese officials began much-delayed talks with the International Monetary Fund on Monday about support measures to lift the country out of its extreme economic crisis.
"We hope the negotiations will be concluded as soon as possible but given the complexity of the issues it is possible that other rounds will be held," said Deputy Prime Minister Saade Chami, who is leading the Lebanese delegation.
The talks are taking place online because of Covid-19 restrictions.
Lebanon is hoping for a financial rescue package to rekindle an economy that has been in free-fall for more than two years.
The previous government held several rounds of talks with the IMF but was unable to secure a bailout, amid a failure by the two sides to agree on the scale of financial losses from the meltdown.
The current government opened a preparatory dialogue with the IMF last year and has settled on about $69 billion as its estimate for the financial sector's losses, before the talks that began on Monday.
The state defaulted on its sovereign debt in 2020, the currency has lost about 90 per cent of its value on the black market and four in five Lebanese are now considered poor by the UN.
Despite the country's shocking social and economic decline, Lebanon's ruling class has continued to stall reforms demanded by foreign donors before any assistance is granted.
The Cabinet of Prime Minister Najib Mikati met on Monday for the first time since mid-October, after months of political haggling between its rival factions.
"In this first round of negotiations and over the next two weeks, we will discuss several topics including the budget, the banking sector and the exchange rate," Mr Chami said, according to Mr Mikati's office.
The Outsider
Stephen King, Penguin
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
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Overall head-to-head
Federer 6-1 Cilic
Head-to-head at Wimbledon
Federer 1-0 Cilic
Grand Slams titles
Federer 18-1 Cilic
Best Wimbledon performance
Federer: Winner (2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012)
Cilic: Final (2017*)
2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups
Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
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2.0
Director: S Shankar
Producer: Lyca Productions; presented by Dharma Films
Cast: Rajnikanth, Akshay Kumar, Amy Jackson, Sudhanshu Pandey
Rating: 3.5/5 stars
The Birkin bag is made by Hermès.
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KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
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Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
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The biog
Marital status: Separated with two young daughters
Education: Master's degree from American Univeristy of Cairo
Favourite book: That Is How They Defeat Despair by Salwa Aladian
Favourite Motto: Their happiness is your happiness
Goal: For Nefsy to become his legacy long after he is gon