BEIRUT,  (Xinhua) -- In the midst of a protracted economic crisis, Lebanese wineries are eyeing the lucrative Chinese market, calling for a joint effort among peers in boosting their sales in China. "China is one of the best markets to export our products," Walid Habchi, co-founder and partner at Couvent Rouge winery, told Xinhua during the 13th edition of Vinifest, a four-day wine festival that kicked off in Beirut on October 5 and attended by more than 80 Lebanese wineries and spirits producers as well as hundreds of oenophiles from Lebanon and abroad. But tapping a new market requires a big bugdet to be used in areas such as market research, brand promotion and finding the right distributors, etc, Habchi said, adding Lebanese wineries should join their efforts and support each other throughout the process.

In order to grab a humble share of China's wine market, Lebanese wineries need to work together so that they would be able to sell their products to China in quantities, said Thuraya Karam, owner of Karam wines. "At Karam wines, we have started targeting the Chinese market by participating in a virtual wine-tasting event, but we need more support to be able to enter the market sustainably," Karam said. For his part, Gabriel Kechichian, a consultant at Domaine Wardy, said he hoped the international shipping costs could go down soon to facilitate the export of Lebanese wine. "Shipping costs have increased tremendously after the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic, and they are still expensive, but I hope they will drop soon, enabling us to resume our communication with Chinese companies to send our products," said Kechichian.

Beirut - Thaer Abbas -- aawsat.com -- Lebanese officials downplayed the importance of reports that pointed to Israel’s rejection of Lebanon’s remarks on the draft agreement pertaining to the demarcation of the maritime borders. Lebanese officials said on Friday that they were waiting for US envoy Amos Hochstein to inform them of the Israeli position. Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri told Asharq Al-Awsat that Lebanon would not take media leaks into consideration, but would wait for the official position that would be conveyed by the American envoy. “The Lebanese remarks are simple, and they were discussed with the US envoy before they were officially sent,” Berri underlined. What is happening now is “internal Israeli electoral bickering that does not concern us,” the Lebanese parliament speaker emphasized, noting that his country was waiting for an official response from Hochstein to proceed accordingly.

Information announced by Israel on Thursday about its rejection of the Lebanese comments on the border demarcation agreement sparked confusion amid Lebanese political circles. Deputy Speaker Elias Bou Saab, who is assigned by President Michel Aoun to follow up on the negotiations issue, said that Lebanon was “in contact with Hochstein, who is mediating the maritime border agreement with Israel to resolve the outstanding points as the negotiations reach a (decisive) point.” Bou Saab told Reuters on Thursday that he would only respond to official statements and not to media reports on Israel’s stance. He said the deal “is 90 percent done, but the remaining 10 percent could make it or break it,” adding that he was in constant contact with the US mediator.

By Mustafa Abu Sneineh — middleeasteye.net — Lebanese banks have voted unanimously to close their doors following a wave of hold-ups by …

سجعان قزي

@AzziSejean

المفاوضاتُ الجاريةُ لانتخابِ رئيسٍ جديدٍ للجُمهوريّةِ كَشفَت مرّةً أخرى عدمَ استيعاب غالبيّةِ الأطرافِ اللبنانيّةِ والدُوليّةِ بُعدَ الأزمةِ اللبنانيّةِ الحاليّةِ ولا عُمقَ القضيّةِ اللبنانيّةِ التاريخيّة. وحتّى لو اسْتوعَبتها، فليست مستعدِّةً لدفعِ ثمنِ الحلِّ الصحيح. والوفودُ الأجنبيّةُ التي أُرسِلت لحلِّ أزمةِ لبنان في ربعِ الساعةِ الأخيرِ، وهي لَـم تَحُّلها في ربعِ قرنٍ، تأتي هنا في مُهمّاتِ تَدرّجٍ، خصوصًا أنّها لم تَنجح في حلِّ أزَماتِ بلدانِها ولا أزمَاتِ بلدانٍ أخرى. وفي إطارِ مُهمّات التَدرُّج، زُوِّدَت بأسماء بمرشَّحين "جينيريك" لرئاسةِ الجُمهوريّةِ كأنَّ لدينا، مثلَ الدواءِ، نَدرةُ مرشَّحين أُصَلاء (براند). و"مِنَ الجينيريك جُوْد".

إذا كان اهتمامُ الدولِ الغربيّةِ بلبنان ناتجًا عن تراكمِ أزَماتِه ودُنوِّ استحقاقاتِه الدستوريّةِ والسياسيّة، فهو نابعٌ أيضًا عن قرارٍ أميركيٍّ/أوروبيٍّ بمحاولةِ "تصفيةِ" القضايا الإقليميّةِ بعدما تَفاقَمت حربُ روسيا على أوكرانيا، وتكاد تتحوّلُ مواجهةً متعددةَ الأوجُهِ بين روسيا من جِهةٍ والاتّحادِ الأوروبيِّ والحلفِ الأطلسيِّ من جِهةٍ أخرى. وباستثناءِ المعركةِ العسكريّةِ المباشَرة، والتهديدِ بالسلاحِ النوويّ، المواجهةُ بين روسيا والغرب مفتوحةٌ اقتصاديًّا وماليًّا وتجاريًّا وغازيًّا، ومرشحّةٌ لأن تَتطوّرَ في المرحلةِ المقبلة ما لم يَحدُث تغييرٌ طارئ في روسيا، حيث نقمةُ الشعبِ الروسيِّ على الرئيس فلاديمير بوتين تزدادُ.

إن إقدامَ روسيا بوتين على التهديدِ باستعمالِ السلاحِ النوويِّ، بمنأى عن جِدّيتِه أو مناورتِه، سيَدفع الدولَ المشاركِةَ في مؤتمر ڤيينا حولَ الـمَلفِّ النوويِّ الإيرانيِّ إلى أن تكونَ أكثرَ تشددًّا في شروطِها لئلّا يصبحَ التهديدُ بالنوويِّ عادةً لا نعرف متى "تَنقُش".