Berri Supports Dialogue with Damascus, Says Wage Scale Will be Approved
Speaker Nabih Berri on Saturday announced that he supports dialogue with Damascus to coordinate the return of Syrian refugees back home, pointing out that there must be a way to “contact” the Syrian government.
“We did not ask any president to go to Syria (for the dialogue), but are not there any other means for contact,” said Berri.
Prime Minister Saad Hariri announced earlier that he is in favor of a “speedy and safe return” by the Syrian refugees to their country, while stressing that Lebanon will only negotiate such a move with the United Nations and not with the Syrian regime.
Political parties are divided over the means to facilitate the return of refugees. One team says the matter must be coordinated through the United Nations, while another team pushes for coordination with the Syrian government.
On the thorny wage scale file, Berri said he believes “the salary scale does not represent a burden on the treasury, it can be funded from multiple sources including the Value Added Tax, banks, maritime property violations which could reach to around 2000 billion.”
He assured that the atmospheres are “positive and the wage scale can be approved on Tuesday,” during the parliament session.
Source: Agence France Presse
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