Gemayel: Tripoli Unrest Connected to Foreign Affairs

Phalange Party Amin Gemayel praised on Saturday Prime Minister Najib Miqati’s trip to France, saying that “this is the image of Lebanon we want to promote abroad, not that of infighting.”

He said in a statement: “The Tripoli unrest is linked to external affairs and it has nothing to do with Lebanon.”

He therefore stressed the need to prevent Lebanon from being dragged into disputes that don’t concern it.

Addressing the current government deadlock, Gemayel noted: “The situation contradicts with the simplest of political rules.”

“How can a government, which is formed of one political camp that shares the same objectives, be obstructed by the people that established it?” he wondered.

“If such a government cannot be united, then we are facing a real crisis that transcends the current dispute,” said the Phalange Party chief.

“The government has no excuse in delaying in ending the dispute in order to tackle the current possession of illegitimate arms in Lebanon,” he stressed.

Miqati had suspended cabinet sessions on February 1 over an ongoing dispute over the issue of administrative appointments.

The suspension was prompted when Free Patriotic Movement ministers walked out from Wednesday’s session.

“The move is meant to push everyone to act responsibly and use their energy positively, towards the smooth run of state affairs not the opposite,” the prime minister said.

A dispute between President Michel Suleiman and FPM leader MP Michel Aoun over shares allotted to Christians has prevented consensus over administrative appointments, leaving several high-ranking posts vacant.

Miqati traveled to France on Thursday where he held talks on Friday with French President Nicolas Sarkozy and Prime Minister Francois Fillon.