Al-Rahi to Tackle Presidential Elections during Vatican Visit

Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi is scheduled to travel to the Vatican on Sunday where he is set to discuss various Lebanese affairs, reported al-Joumhouria newspaper on Saturday.

It said that next year's presidential elections will be at the center of discussions in light of the postponement of the parliamentary elections and the extension of parliament's term.

The patriarch's talks will focus on maintaining Lebanon's democratic system and avoid another extension of one of the main positions in the country, namely that of the president.

Al-Rahi is seeking to garner sufficient international support to provide the necessary conditions to hold the elections on time, while stressing the dangerousness of Lebanon falling into presidential vacuum given that it has also not formed a new government.

Al-Joumhouria said that he is seeking the same international support for the presidential elections that helped Lebanon stage the 2005 and 2009 parliamentary elections and the presidential elections in 2008.

President Michel Suleiman's term ends in spring 2014 amid fears that the rival political parties' disputes will thwart holding the elections for his successor, which will force the extension of his term or plunge the country in presidential vacuum.