As France urges Lebanon to pick PM, country faces even tougher times

FILE PHOTO: A demonstrator holds a Lebanese flag during a protest against the fall in Lebanese pound currency and mounting economic hardships, in Beirut, Lebanon March 12, 2021. REUTERS/Aziz Taher/File Photo

BEIRUT (Reuters) - France urged Lebanon on Friday to designate a prime minister as soon as possible after Saad al-Hariri abandoned efforts to form a government, but prospects for a new cabinet being agreed soon looked bleak after months of political conflict.

Lebanon looks set to fall ever deeper into economic collapse with many of its sectarian politicians switching their focus to elections next year rather than a new government or financial rescue plan, seemingly unfazed by threats of Western sanctions.