Saudi Arabia lifts 5-year Lebanese import ban

After years of curbs, Saudi Arabia’s authorities have reopened the kingdom’s market to imports from Lebanon, lifting a five-year ban, a statement by the official press agency indicated.

According to the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) on Wednesday evening, Riyadh justified the move by citing the encouraging measures taken by the Lebanese government to strengthen state institutions.

The import ban severed access to one of Lebanon’s most important export markets and put particular pressure on the Lebanese agricultural sector.

“This is a real turning point,” Ibrahim Tarshishi, chairperson of the farmers’ association in Lebanon’s eastern Bekaa Valley, told Deutsche Presse-Agentur (dpa).

He said the focus would now be on creating the practical conditions for resuming exports and resolving outstanding issues such as transit visas for truck drivers. “We have waited five years for such a decision,” he added.

Saudi Arabia halted imports of fruits and vegetables from Lebanon in 2021. The kingdom’s authorities justified the move at the time by citing an increase in attempts to smuggle drugs, allegedly by the Hezbollah militia, into the country via agricultural shipments.

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun welcomed the decision, describing it as an expression of Saudi support for Lebanon, intended to strengthen the economy and further solidify relations between the two countries.

In the wake of the war between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah, the government in Beirut aims to curb Iranian influence in the country. Observers see Saudi Arabia’s decision as an important step in supporting the Lebanese government.