Le Drian discusses Hezbollah disarmament, army support as he meets Gemayel in Beirut
French Special Envoy Jean-Yves Le Drian met Wednesday with Kataeb leader Sami Gemayel as he visits Lebanon to prepare for a conference to support the Lebanese Army.
Le Drian arrived Monday in Beirut and met with President Joseph Aoun, Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, Foreign Minister Joseph Rajji, Army chief Rodolphe Haykal, former PSP leader Walid Jumblat, and Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea.
Under heavy U.S. pressure and fears of expanded Israeli strikes, Lebanon's government has committed to disarming Hezbollah, and the army is set to dismantle the group's military infrastructure near the border by year's end before tackling the rest of the country, but Lebanon’s army is cash-strapped and lacks resources and equipment. It has also suffered from the repercussions of the country’s economic meltdown six years ago, and depends heavily on U.S. aid.
Western and Arab countries have also offered support.
Gemayel said he urged Le Drian for more French coordination and audit of the army deployment in south Lebanon. He said Lebanon needs to know exactly how the army is failing to do its job, in case it is.
In a press conference, the Kataeb leader stressed that the main point that Le Drian is discussing in Lebanon is Hezbollah's disarmament. "Hezbollah's unwillingness to hand over its arms north of the Litani river is a proof that the weapons' goal is not to defend Lebanon and liberate Palestine but to terrorize the Lebanese people," he said, blaming Hezbollah for the current situation in Lebanon.
France is a member of a U.S.-chaired committee monitoring a year-long ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel. The five-member committee, which also includes Lebanon, Israel, the U.S. and the U.N. peacekeeping force, is set to meet with Lebanese and Israeli civilian representatives on December 19.
Paris has promised to organize two conferences for supporting Lebanon. One of the conferences is to drum up financial aid for the reconstruction and the second is to support the Lebanese Army, but Le Drian has only discussed the army support conference in his meetings with Lebanese officials.
"The conference to support the army is the most urgent priority today and it comes before reconstruction. To rebuild we must first be sure that what we build will not be destroyed again," Gemayel said.
Source: Naharnet
| Copyright © 2012 Naharnet.com. All Rights Reserved. | https://naharnet.com/stories/en/317042 |