The United States announced Wednesday $72 million in aid to crisis-hit Lebanon to cover security personnel salaries for six months, in a joint programme with the United Nations.
Lebanon’s economy has been in free fall for three years, resulting in slashed military budget and eating away at the value of soldiers’ salaries.
Washington, which has long been the biggest donor to Lebanon’s army, has partnered with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to facilitate the delivery of the first US aid of its kind.
The programme “will provide $72 million in temporary financial support for Lebanese Armed Forces and Internal Security Forces personnel”, the UN agency and US embassy in Beirut said in a joint statement
