By Andrei Skvarsky.
Al Habtoor Group, a United Arab Emirates conglomerate with interests ranging from real estate to publishing, has announced it planned to confront the Lebanese government in a legal “dispute” over alleged breaches by Beirut of a UAE-Lebanese investment treaty.
Al Habtoor accuses Lebanon’s government and central bank of illegitimate restrictions on the withdrawal by the Dubai-based conglomerate of a $44m share of the nearly $1bn that the company says it has invested in Lebanon.
“Lebanon has also failed to secure a safe and sound environment for Al Habtoor Group’s businesses and investments,” Al Habtoor said in a statement, citing the Lebanese government as pledging itself under the 1999 treaty to protect Emirati investments.
Al Habtoor, which is going to act through global law firm White & Case, notified the Lebanese government this month about the planned dispute action.
The conglomerate warned it “intends to pursue its rights vigorously” and threatened, without elaborating, to launch “local and international legal proceedings against the Lebanese Republic in accordance with the Treaty” if the dispute was not resolved within six months.
Al Habtoor said the recipients of its investments in Lebanon include banks, Hilton-branded luxury hotels, a shopping mall and a 100,000-square-metre entertainment and leisure facility.
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