UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon says situation remains 'tremendously fragile'

U.N. Special Coordinator for Lebanon Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert has told the United Nations Security Council that "the current window of opportunity to effect real change in Lebanon will not stay open indefinitely".

During a briefing Thursday on the implementation of resolution 1701, Speaking alongside Assistant Secretary-General for the Middle East, Asia and the Pacific Mohamed Khaled Khiari, she commended steps taken by the Lebanese authorities in recent months and significant progress made by the Lebanese Armed Forces.

The Special Coordinator acknowledged, however, that Lebanon has an uphill trajectory ahead in the area of reforms, noting the urgent need to address the “deep-rooted rot of corruption and clientelism”, and on the question of arms outside State control. “And there can be no turning back”, she said. “This work must be done. It must be done to restore public trust. To build investor and depositor confidence. To preserve stability. And certainly, it must be done to move the needle on financing for recovery and reconstruction.”

While admitting that there were no expectations for a State monopoly on arms to materialize overnight, Hennis-Plasschaert noted that a “clearly articulated roadmap with timelines, underpinned by concrete plans, was needed yesterday”. She added that “the question of non-State arms is multi-faceted” and that tackling it requires “foresight and a dedicated framework”.

Turning to the cessation of hostilities, the Special Coordinator noted that the situation remains “tremendously fragile”, given the continued Israeli presence in five positions and two so-called buffer zones, as well as recurrent airstrikes across Lebanon. She underlined that “this new status quo cannot and must not be accepted as normal”, adding that it would “not lead to the stability, safety and security that the parties say they seek”.

The Special Coordinator underscored Lebanon’s persistent vulnerability to regional instability, recalling the military escalation between Iran and Israel in June, as well as recent concerning security developments in Syria. In doing so, she asserted the need to “calibrate our responses to the regional dimensions of the challenges facing the Levant”.

To complement and reinforce the military-to-military mechanisms already in place, Hennis-Plasschaert further stressed the urgent need for a dedicated track to elevate unresolved issues to the political level to produce decisive commitments. “Short of this, sustainable solutions will continue to elude both sides”, she stressed.

Hennis-Plasschaert acknowledged that the Lebanese authorities are under tremendous and mounting pressure. “Lebanon, in need of major, sustained international support, runs the risk of being sidelined as regional dynamics shift rapidly around it – a harsh reality that must be acknowledged”, she concluded.