Miqati Vows Adoption of $1.6 Billion Plan to Equip Lebanese Army
Prime Minister Najib Miqati promised on Wednesday his government’s approval of a $1.6 billion four-year plan to improve the capabilities of the Lebanese army.
“The cabinet, which is working on meeting the needs of the military, is on the verge of approving a $1.6 billion plan divided to four years to improve its capabilities,” Miqati said in a statement he issued on the occasion of Army Day.
The government will execute this plan by sending a draft-law to parliament for approval and by holding an international conference to provide the necessary equipment to the military in accordance with U.N. Security Council Resolution 1701, he said.
The delicate situation that Lebanon went through in the past years has increased the responsibilities of the army from the protection of the southern border with Israel to preserving security in the country, Miqati said.
The army’s “impartiality” and “neutrality” in this role prompted the government to send troops to the northern and eastern borders with Syria to preserve security and prevent the residents of border regions from falling victims to security incidents, he added.
Military reinforcements were sent last month to the areas bordering Syria after several people were killed and injured in Syrian cross-border shelling during clashes between government troops and rebels seeking to topple the regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad.
Miqati lauded the army in “consolidating its own unity” and “dousing the fire of strife.”
“It is the symbol of dignity and national sovereignty that no Lebanese accepts to be violated no matter what,” he said.
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