BEIRUT, Nov. 6 (Xinhua) -- Lebanon's caretaker Tourism Minister Avedis Guidanian on Tuesday officially apologized to Egypt for his earlier criticism of the country's sanitation and living conditions, National News Agency (NNA) reported.

Guidanian made the apology during his visit to Egyptian Ambassador to Lebanon Nazih El Naggary, NNA said.

"We are keen on preserving strong Lebanese-Egyptian ties especially in the tourism sector," Guidanian told El Naggary.

In his interview with the Daily Star newspaper published on Monday, the Lenbanese minister referred to Egypt in a negative way when comparing Lebanon with the Arab most populous country.

"I mean look at Egypt, is there a place dirtier than it? People are louder than us. There is more traffic than here. People live in graves," Guidanian said.