02 March 2007

France's interior minister said Wednesday that Lebanon was surrounded by "enemies, both externally and internally," as was obvious by what he called the behavior of certain groups contributing to the current political deadlock. Nicolas Sarkozy, who is also a presidential candidate for the 2007 presidential polls, gave his first news conference dealing with international politics, in which he addressed Lebanon's situation and ties between the two countries.

"It is necessary that French-Lebanese ties be based on objective and honest dialogue to maintain a long-term constructive relationship between the two countries," he said in Paris.

"While President Jacques Chirac succeeded in building excellent ties with Lebanon," he said, "those ties ought to be further deepened and freed from a personal outlook on things."

Sarkozy was referring to the warm relationship Chirac maintains with the family of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, with whom he was close friends untile the latter was assassinated in February 2005.

He said that bilateral ties between any two countries ought to be based on "clear-cut political strategies and ideologies," adding that he had "three major priorities" with regard to the Lebanese situation, of which the first was to follow-up on the UN probe into Hariri's assassination and "penalize the perpetrators."

The second of his priorities is to "convince Syria that Lebanon is an independent country."

"I will fight with all the power I have to preserve Lebanon's independence," Sarkozy said.

The third objective on his agenda, according to the minister, was to convince Hizbullah into "transforming into a purely political organization by laying its weapons, and being less influenced by Iran."

"Disarming militias is a must," Sarkozy said, adding: "The Lebanese government should be the only authority entitled to hold weapons."

Sarkozy emphasized that he was against the war Israel waged on Lebanon last summer. "The Israeli reaction was harsh and disproportionate," he said, adding that he had informed Israeli officials of his position.

"I am a friend of Israel but I am free to express my own views and the same goes for the US," he added.

Many in France have accused Sarkozy of being closely connected to the Bush administration, and fear that such close connections will "unsettle the French identity."

Sarkozy, who described Lebanon as a "true miracle" due to the diversity and pluralism of its culture, said that "moderate regimes" such as the Lebanese model ought to be "supported."

Sarkozy is a declared candidate for this spring's French presidential elections, setting up an intriguing contest against socialist hopeful Segolene Royal.

As interior minister and leader of the UMP party, he has sharply divided opinion in France by adopting a tough stance on immigration and immigrants. - The Daily Star