BEIRUT: Lebanon is planning a tender to import 50,000 tonnes of wheat from India but the timing depends on the Lebanese central bank opening the necessary credit line, the economy minister said, as Beirut seeks alternatives to Ukrainian grain.
Lebanon bought the bulk of its wheat from Ukraine until Russia attacked, and the World Bank has warned it is one of a number of developing countries that face near-term wheat supply shortages as a result.
The Lebanese government has asked the central bank for a $26-million advance to launch the tender, Economy Minister Amin Salam said, adding that the tender would be launched very quickly once the credit line was opened.
“India is the first state to give me a final answer on quantities and tomorrow it will give me answer on the price,” Salam said.
Lebanon was still waiting to hear from the United States and Kazakhstan on specifications and prices, he said.
“We still have a few purchases that are coming in the next week (from Ukraine),” he said, adding that 26,000 tonnes was on its way. “But after that we are not sure what we can get from Ukraine.”
Meanwhile, a Lebanese judge on Monday charged central bank chief Riad Salameh with “illicit enrichment” and money laundering after he failed to attend a court hearing for the fifth time, a judicial source said.
Judge Ghada Aoun also charged Salameh’s brother Raja with “facilitating money laundering” after he was arrested last week over financial misconduct, the source said.
The same charge was filed against Ukrainian national Anna Kosakova, who jointly owns a company with Raja Salameh.
Aoun is investigating whether a number of residential apartments in Paris belong to Riad Salameh, according to the judicial source.
His brother had previously claimed the flats belong to the central bank, the source added.
Earlier this year, Aoun slapped the central bank chief with a travel ban for alleged financial misconduct and ordered security forces to forcibly bring him in for questioning. The judge is overseeing several legal cases against the central bank governor, who has repeatedly failed to show up at hearings. – AFP
