Aoun urges Arab solidarity to face challenges/Nasrallah met with Sleiman Frangieh Hussein Dakroub/The Daily Star/January 21/17
BEIRUT: President Michel Aoun Friday called on Arab countries to close ranks, stressing that their solidarity was essential to confronting challenges threatening to divide the Arab world. Aoun spoke during a meeting with Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit, who arrived in Beirut earlier in the day. He is in the country on a short visit for talks ahead of the Arab summit, slated to be held in Jordan on March 29. It will focus on inter-Arab relations and how the new U.S. administration under President Donald Trump will deal with the Arab world.
“Lebanon supports anything that helps achieve solidarity among Arab states because this is the basis of the strength of these states,” Aoun said. “The Arab League should remain a point of reference, despite weaknesses … as a result of wars and divisions.”
The president expressed hope that the Arab summit would be able to resolve conflicts, in a clear reference to the nearly 6-year-old war in Syria, the nearly 2-year-old war in Yemen, Iraq’s ongoing battle against Daesh (ISIS) and the turmoil in Libya.
“Lebanon is ready to contribute to any Arab effort in this respect,” Aoun said, according to a statement from his media office.
Aboul Gheit, paying his first trip to Lebanon since his appointment last year, said the visit was to “assert the Arab League’s support for Lebanon and its appreciation of the big role it plays inside and outside the Arab League.”
“We discussed the situation in the region and how Lebanon can contribute to achieving stability [regionally],” Aboul Gheit told reporters after meeting Aoun at Baabda Palace. He said he invited Aoun to visit the Arab League headquarters in Cairo and give a speech as part of his future trip to Egypt.
Asked why the Arab League was not more proactive on Syria, Aboul Gheit said: “The Arab League has been neutralized on the Syrian issue for years. Since the crisis erupted [in 2011], the Arab League has been sidelined following its failed efforts and has been replaced by the United Nations. We know that the conflict over Syria is regional as much as it is international.”
Aboul Gheit, who later held talks with Speaker Nabih Berri and Prime Minister Saad Hariri, said the Arab League was very concerned over Trump’s stated intention to move the U.S. Embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to occupied Jerusalem.
“We hope that [Trump] will be careful and wary of steps over East Jerusalem because the situation might entail very dire consequences if an uncalculated step is taken,” he said.
Moving the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem would reverse decades of U.S. policy that sees the final status of Jerusalem – that’s Arab majority eastern side has been occupied by Israel since 1967 – should be determined in peace negotiations. Aboul Gheit said he discussed the issue with Hariri. “We both voiced opposition [the embassy move] on the one hand and the gravity of this measure if it was carried out on the other,” he said.
“We discussed how to tackle problems that exert pressure on the entire region and on inter-Arab relations. We also discussed the issue of the new U.S. presidency, how it will deal with the Arab world and what the Arabs should do to face any development in this respect,” he added.
Aboul Gheit described his meeting with Hariri as “extremely important.” “It is noticeable for everyone that stability has returned to Lebanon,” he said. At his Downtown Beirut residence, Hariri hosted a lunch for the Arab diplomat.
Aboul Gheit said his talks with Berri focused on the refugee crisis in Lebanon and means to preserve the country given the strain of hosting more than 1 million Syrian refugees.
“The Arab League supports and stands by Lebanon. We are talking with the international community, donor states and international organizations on how to help Lebanon overcome the problems of refugees and increase the grants and aid to them,” he added.
There are 1.03 million refugees registered with UNHCR – the U.N. refugee agency – but the government puts the figure at closer to 1.5 million.
Meanwhile, Interior Minister Nouhad Machnouk spoke of difficulties to reach agreement on a new vote law to replace the disputed 1960 majoritarian system.
“It is certain that there are difficulties, but there is nothing impossible because political parties concerned with drafting a new electoral law must exert all efforts to finish this issue before May 21, the date for holding the elections under the current [1960] law,” Machnouk told reporters after meeting Berri at Ain al-Tineh. Noting that the 1960 law was rejected by most politicians, he said: “At the same time, this is the choice available to us until a new electoral law is drafted.”
Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah met with Marada Movement leader MP Sleiman Frangieh, reaffirming their alliance in the first face-to-face encounter since Aoun was elected president on Oct. 31.
The pair discussed the current political situation in the country and a number of other issues, including the Cabinet situation and an electoral law, a statement issued by Hezbollah’s press office said.
They also affirmed the “deep relationship” between the two sides and the “strength of their alliance [as they] agreed to continue coordination and cooperation in various fields,” the statement said.
The meeting, held at Nasrallah’s office in the southern suburb of Haret Hreik, was also attended by Frangieh’s Marada Movement Public Works Minister Youssef Fenianos, top Nasrallah aide Hussein Khalil and Hezbollah senior security official Wafiq Safa.
Although Hezbollah stood firm in its support for Aoun for president during the 29-month presidential vacuum, Nasrallah has stressed in his speeches that Frangieh, Aoun’s rival for the post, was Hezbollah’s ally.
