Bassil: National Unity Much More Important than Arab Solidarity
Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil revealed on Thursday that Lebanon's delegation succeeded during the recent United Nations Human Rights Council meeting in dropping an article in its statement that links Hizbullah to terrorism.
He added during a press conference: “Lebanon's national unity is much more important than Arab solidarity.”
“We may not have supported a position at the recent Arab League summit that targets a Lebanese faction, but that does not mean that we advocate that faction's stances,” he explained.
Addressing the Arab summit's decision to form a joint Arab force, Bassil remarked that such an idea had been proposed at the Arab League before the crisis in Yemen erupted.
“Lebanon has always backed such a force,” he told reporters.
“We stressed during the Arab foreign ministers meeting that Lebanon will support any position that enjoys consensus,” the minister declared.
“We had coordinated our stance with Prime Minister Tammam Salam, which backs the legitimacy of any Arab country and calls for Lebanon to remain neutral from crises,” Bassil added.
“We cannot tailor Lebanon's foreign policy to cater to the interests of certain sides,” he remarked.
The Arab League summit over the weekend agreed to continue on supporting the Saudi-led military operation against Yemen until the Huthi rebels are defeated and legitimacy is restored in the country.
Saudi Arabia had last week launched airstrikes against Yemen's rebel movement.
Salam's position at the Arab summit had created a debate among political powers, with Hizbullah claiming that his stances do not reflect the views of all Lebanese.
The premier had said at the summit that Lebanon supported any decision to preserve the territorial integrity of Yemen, reiterating the country's commitment to the dissociation policy and calling for distancing Lebanon from the region's conflicts.
The cabinet on Wednesday discussed his stand and later renewed its trust in the prime minister.
Addressing the case of Syrian refugees in Lebanon, Bassil said: “Ultimately, we have this crisis to deal with and we should focus our energy on resolving it. We do not have high hopes from foreign powers, but it is our duty to pursue opportunities.”
“Reducing the number of Syrian refugees is more effective than foreign aid,” he stated.
This can be achieved through removing the refugee status off those who do not deserve it, Bassil explained.
Lebanon is hosting around 1.5 million refugees who have fled the fighting in their war-torn country.
Salam asked donors on Tuesday for humanitarian assistance to help the Lebanese authorities implement a plan to overcome the Syrian refugee crisis.
“The crisis should be managed through a more than $1 billion plan set up by the Lebanese government,” he said at an international conference for donors held in Kuwait.
M.T.
G.K.
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