Suleiman in Nice and New York this Month as Refugee Crisis Looms
President Michel Suleiman, who is scheduled to travel to France and New York this month, is expected to hold talks with several world leaders on the Syrian crisis and the refugee influx in Lebanon.
As Safir newspaper said Tuesday that Suleiman will first travel to the southern French city of Nice to attend on Sept. 6 and 7 the Francophone games that are a combination of artistic and sporting events for the mostly French speaking countries.
The games are held every four years.
Suleiman could meet with French President Francois Hollande on the sidelines of the event to discuss with him the latest developments in Syria and mainly the French stance from a possible U.S. military strike on the regime over its alleged use of chemical weapons.
His expected talks with Hollande could also deal with the Syrian refugee influx in Lebanon after the the U.N. refugee agency said that at the end of August some 716,000 Syrian refugees were registered or in the process of being registered in Lebanon.
The UNHCR also said that more than two million Syrians have now fled their war-ravaged country.
France in cooperation with U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon has called for an international conference on the sidelines of the the General Assembly meeting in New York on Sept. 25 to establish a fund for the refugees.
The conference is expected to discuss ways to provide the necessary assistance to Lebanon to help it confront the rising number of the displaced.
Suleiman is expected to attend the conference as he will be traveling to New York at the head of the Lebanese delegation to attend the General Assembly sessions and address world leaders.
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