Salam, who has been in office for less than a year and is visiting Macron for the second time, is expected at the Elyse Palace at 5pm.

Macron "will reiterate his commitment to full compliance with the ceasefire by all parties and will stress the need for the Lebanese authorities to embark on the second phase of the plan aimed at ensuring the state's sole control of weapons and the full restoration of its sovereignty", the French presidency said.

Despite aceasefirethat ended the war with Hezbollah in November 2024, the Israeli army continues to carry out strikes in southern and eastern Lebanon. It claims to be targeting the pro-Iranian group, whichIsraelaccuses of rearming.

The Lebanese army said in early January that it had completed the first phase of its plan to disarm Hezbollah, clearing the areabetween the Israeli border and the Litani River, some 30 kilometres further north.

The army is due to gradually apply the disarmament plan to the rest of the country, starting with the entire southern region.

ButHezbollahrefuses to surrender its weapons north of the river, saying the agreement does not apply there,and accuses Israel of repeatedly violating the ceasefire.

France's Macron hails UN decision to extend peacekeeping mission in Lebanon

'France's full support'

According to the president's office, Macron "will reaffirm France's full support for the Lebanese Armed Forces, a pillar of national sovereignty and stability, ahead of the international conference in support of Lebanon's sovereignty to be held in Paris on 5 March".

The conference is intended to raise funds for Lebanon's army and police, which lack resources for the fight against Hezbollah.

The two heads of state "will also discuss the pursuit of economic and financial reforms essential to consolidating Lebanon's sovereignty and restoring its prosperity", the lyse added.

Five years after Beirut port explosion, justice and recovery remain elusive

The Lebanese government approved a bill at the end of December aimed at creatinga mechanism to return depositors' funds wiped out inthe country's financial meltdown in 2019, which is estimated to have caused losses totallingabout $70 billion.

The collapse followed decades of corruption, financial mismanagement and profiteering.

France has offered to host a second international conference on Lebanon "dedicated to the countrys reconstruction and economic recovery", theForeign Ministry saidafter talks between Salam and Foreign MinisterJean-Nol Barrot on Thursday.

(with newswires)

Originally published on RFI