France does not see Lebanon crisis impacting aid

RIYADH, Jan 6 (Reuters) International donors have not changed plans to help Lebanon recover from last year's war with Israel despite a political crisis that added further strain to its economy, France's foreign minister said today.

Lebanon's government on Tuesday unveiled economic reforms to be presented to an international donors' conference in Paris this month that Beirut hopes will raise 4 billion dollar to help its economy recover from a devastating summer war with Israel.

''This (Paris conference) is the opportunity to show support to the (Lebanese) government ... which is an elected government that came from an elected majority,'' Foreign Minister Philippe Douste-Blazy told reporters in Riyadh.

''As far as I know, the current crisis has not at all led to any review either in the participation of any country or in the amount of reconstruction aid,'' he said after talks with Saudi counterpart Prince Saud al-Faisal. He did not give aid figures.

Protesters have camped out in central Beirut since December. 1 to demand that the anti-Syrian government of Prime Minister Fouad Siniora step down.

Economy and Trade Minister Sami Haddad said last month the Paris conference could be postponed or cancelled because of the crisis with Lebanon's Hezbollah-led opposition.

But Siniora, backed by Western governments including France and the United States, unveiled reform proposals regardless, suggesting the conference could go ahead as planned.

Prince Saud, who confirmed reports earlier this week of a meeting recently between King Abdullah and a Hezbollah delegation, gave cautious backing to the conference.

''Saudi Arabia welcomes the Paris conference ... and will continue its efforts to make it succeed. It is however important to reach a national consensus formula on the current Lebanese crisis to make sure the conference achieves its goals,'' he said.

''There is nothing strange about the meeting (with Hezbollah).

Saudi Arabia is not a party to the dispute, but it wants to be a friend of Lebanon and of all its groups,'' he said, renewing calls for a dialogue.

A Sunni bastion, Saudi Arabia is critical of the Iran-backed Hezbollah since it sparked the 34-day war with Israel after capturing two soldiers in a cross border attack in July.

Lebanon's main opposition-backed labour union today called for a sit-in next Tuesday to protest Siniora's reforms, which aim to boost economic growth and ease the burden of Lebanon's massive public debt level.

REUTERS PB PM0010