BEIRUT, Lebanon 

Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati on Tuesday called for national dialogue to enhance relations with the Gulf countries.

“It’s important to have an internal understanding through a dialogue table to strengthen Lebanon's relationships with the Arab states, especially the Gulf," Mikati told a press conference in Beirut.

He underlined the necessity “not to insult these countries or meddle in their domestic affairs."

The Lebanese premier also called for abiding by the “policy of dissociation to preserve our country and protects its ties with the international community and Arab world."

A diplomatic crisis erupted between Lebanon and Gulf nations over former Information Minister George Kordahi’s criticism of the Yemen war before assuming his portfolio.

Kordahi resigned on Dec. 3 in an effort to heal the rift with the Gulf nations.

Meanwhile, Mikati described the suspension of the cabinet meetings as a “structural defect in the government’s work that can neither be ignored nor overlooked."

On Oct. 13, a cabinet session was postponed indefinitely, following the insistence of ministers affiliated with the Shia Hezbollah group and Amal movement to hold a discussion on the Beirut port blast case, in an effort to disqualify the judicial investigator, Judge Tarek Bitar, whom they accuse of politicizing the investigation into the explosion.

No ministerial session has been held since that date.

Since late 2019, Lebanon has been grappling with a severe economic crisis, along with fuel and medicine shortage.

* Writing by Ahmed Asmar in Ankara