Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea said French President Francois Hollande's meeting with President Michel Suleiman during his visit to Beirut reflected a French stance that Paris rejects to deal with the current cabinet.

In an interview with al-Joumhouria daily on Monday, Geagea stressed that avoiding any meeting with the cabinet members will gradually lead to isolating the government, and only then will the officials become convinced that their cabinet is impossible to remain.

French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius stressed Monday that a planned visit by Lebanese Premier Najib Miqati hasn't been cancelled after reports that the trip was being reconsidered over French President Francois Hollande's “sudden” visit to Beirut.

“Miqati's visit to France is still on,” Fabius told An Nahar newspaper. “It's true that we didn't discuss it today (Sunday) but nothing has changed in the date at the end of this month.”

Independence Movement leader Michel Mouawad on Sunday warned that “there is an attempt in Lebanon to replace the Syrian hegemony with an Iranian hegemony,” urging Lebanese expatriates in Australia to vote heavily in the 2013 parliamentary elections.

“Although the threat of the Syrian regime has not ended, it cannot change the equation in Lebanon anymore,” Mouawad said during a meeting with members of the Lebanese community in Australia.

Dozens of protesters from the youth organizations of the March 14 forces on Sunday staged a sit-in outside the Grand Serail at the Riad al-Solh square in downtown Beirut, demanding the departure of the government and stressing that they will press on with their “confrontation.”

In a symbolic gesture, demonstrators assembled a giant-sized puzzle with the flag of the Independence Uprising on one side and the picture of slain Intelligence Bureau chief Maj. Gen. Wissam al-Hasan on the other.

Lebanon's top leaders congratulated on Sunday Egypt's new Coptic Pope Bishop Tawadros, hoping his selection would lead to dialogue between the Egyptian people and unity among Muslims and Christians in the region.

In a statement he issued after the church chose the new pope in an elaborate ceremony, Speaker Nabih Berri said the selection of Tawadros' name from a chalice by a blindfolded boy “was a lesson in democracy that should be adopted in the Arab world at all levels.”

Prime Minister Najib Miqati traveled to Bulgaria and Hungary on Sunday to discuss with officials ways to consolidate bilateral political and economic relations, his press office said.

Miqati will hold talks with his Bulgarian counterpart Boyko Borissov, Speaker Tsetska Tsacheva and Foreign Minister Nickolay Mladenov on Monday.

French President Francois Hollande warned on Sunday that Paris would prevent any attempt to undermine Lebanon's stability, advising political forces to join hands through dialogue to avert a further crisis.

“I would say to all those who can contribute to the stability of Lebanon to work through the spirit of dialogue,” Hollande said at a joint press conference with President Michel Suleiman at Baabda palace during a short trip to Beirut.

Phalange party leader Amin Gemayel defended the call of the March 14 opposition for the formation of a new government, saying the cabinet of Premier Najib Miqati collapsed at the national level.

“The current government collapsed nationally before its collapse constitutionally,” Gemayel told An Nahar daily published Sunday. “This collapse manifested through its birth, structure and performance.”

Prime Minister Najib Miqati's circles challenged a planned strike by the Syndicate Coordination Committee, saying the government is not ready to work under the pressure of protests in its attempt to find funding sources for a new salary scale for public sector employees.

In remarks to An Nahar daily published Sunday, Miqati's sources said: “We hope the cabinet would complete (on Wednesday) the discussion of the rest of the funding sources articles.”

Former Prime Minister Saad Hariri informed French President Francois Hollande that the March 14 opposition alliance holds onto its decision to call for the formation of a neutral government to salvage Lebanon, An Nahar daily reported on Sunday, as the ex-PM attended a lunch banquet in honor of the French leader in Jeddah.

The newspaper quoted French sources as saying that Hariri sent a letter to Hollande on the eve of his short visit to Beirut on Sunday.