Hariri-Abdullah Meeting: No Settlement on Tribunal
The meeting between Prime Minister Saad Hariri and Saudi King Abdullah was "very good," informed sources told An Nahar newspaper, stressing that the premier is still awaiting the March 8 forces to execute their commitments made for the success of the Saudi-Syrian mediation.
The Hariri-Abdullah talks at dawn Monday Beirut time lasted for a long time at the king's suite at the Plaza hotel in New York, the sources said.
"Hariri's stance remains the same. He is waiting for the other party to execute its commitments," they told An Nahar.
Several diplomatic sources told the newspaper that reports about a Syrian-Saudi settlement are not true. "Hariri's stance from the tribunal will not change."
Al-Liwaa daily quoted an official at the U.S. State Department as saying that Washington was worried about a possible pressure by Abdullah on Hariri to accept a settlement on the tribunal and the indictment that will be issued in his father's assassination case.
"However, the meeting between the Saudi King and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Friday dissipated such fears and … prioritized justice in addition to the stability priority," the official said.
A source told al-Liwaa that the talks between Hariri and Abdullah were part of several meetings they held in the past 48 hours.
Meanwhile, a U.S. official denied to An Nahar that President Barack Obama was planning to meet with Abdullah and Hariri. "There is no plan for President Obama to move to New York."
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