Swiss envoy, Lebanese FM holds talks amid central bank probe
January 25, 2021 GMT
BEIRUT (AP) Lebanon’s foreign minister held talks Monday with the Swiss ambassador to Beirut after Switzerland started a probe into possible money laundering and embezzlement at the Mideast country’s central bank.
Foreign Minister Charbel Wehbi and ambassador Monika Schmutz Kirgoz did not offer comments following their meeting, saying only that the probe is a matter that judicial authorities are dealing with.
Switzerland’s attorney general said last week he has asked Lebanon for cooperation into the probe, without offering further details. It’s not clear what prompted the Swiss investigation. Lebanon is facing its worst economic and financial crisis in its modern history.
Lebanon: foreign minister requests secrecy in Central Bank probe
The Central Bank of Lebanon [Karan Jain/Flickr] January 26, 2021 at 12:08 pm
Lebanon s caretaker foreign minister has asked Switzerland to investigate his country s Central Bank Governor in secret.
Charbel Wehbe made his request in a meeting with the Swiss ambassador to Lebanon, Monika Schmutz Kirgoz, yesterday. Kirgoz refused to comment on the matter, telling Wehbe that the probe was a matter for the Swiss minister of justice and attorney general,
Arab News has reported. Despite the importance of this matter to the Lebanese public, absolute secrecy is required in response to what is being circulated through Lebanese media regarding this case, explained Wehbe. I hope that the Lebanese judiciary will have absolute freedom to make a statement and take the appropriate decision in this regard. He called on Lebanese media outlets to report the news as it is, without interpretation, additions, or switching wor
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Lebanon Foreign Minister Charbel Wehbi and Swiss ambassador Monika Schmutz Kirgoz held talks over central bank probe with regards to possible money laundering and embezzlement of funds
BEIRUT Lebanon’s foreign minister held talks Monday with the Swiss ambassador to Beirut after Switzerland started a probe into possible money laundering and embezzlement at the Mideast country’s central bank.
Foreign Minister Charbel Wehbi and ambassador Monika Schmutz Kirgoz did not offer comments following their meeting, saying only that the probe is a matter that judicial authorities are dealing with.
Switzerland’s attorney general said last week he has asked Lebanon for cooperation into the probe, without offering further details. It’s not clear what prompted the Swiss investigation. Lebanon is facing its worst economic and financial crisis in its modern history.
BEIRUT: Lebanon’s foreign minister, Charbel Wehbe, demanded the absolute secrecy of the investigation into “suspicions of money laundering and embezzlement by the Banque du Liban,” following a Swiss request for assistance from the Lebanese judiciary.
Wehbe met with the Swiss ambassador to Beirut, Monika Schmutz Kirgoz, on Monday, who refused to comment on the matter, saying that the probe was a matter that the Swiss minister of justice and the attorney general were dealing with, adding that the Swiss attorney general was the one who requested judicial assistance.
Wehbe said: “Despite the importance of this matter to the Lebanese public, absolute secrecy is required in response to what is being circulated through Lebanese media regarding this case.”