04 July 2009

BEIRUT: French Foreign Ministry spokesman Eric Chevalier announced on Friday that Foreign Minister Kouchner will hold talks with Lebanese officials on July 9 to convey France's satisfaction with the manner in which Lebanon's June 7 parliamentary polls were managed.

The situation in Lebanon will also be the focus of talks between Saudi King Abdullah bin Abdel-Aziz and Syrian President Bashar Assad, during talks scheduled next week. 

Chevalier stressed that Kouchner will not interfere in the country's internal affairs during his meetings with Lebanese political leaders, particularly regarding the formation of the upcoming national-unity government.

In a statement on Friday, the French spokesman said Kouchner would pay Lebanon a two-day visit starting July 9, adding that he would later leave to Syria to head a conference for French ambassadors in the region.

Concerning the visit to Syria, Chevalier explained that Kouchner will discuss with Syrian officials their country's role vis-a-vis the latest regional developments, in reference to the Saudi-Syrian talks between Saudi Prince Abdel-Aziz bin Abdullah and the Syrian president.

Chevalier added that Kouchner will tackle the French-Syrian bilateral relations and indicated the possibility of holding other Syrian-French meetings, a hint at the possibility of a visit by Assad to France to meet with President Nicolas Sarkozy, or vice versa.

On Friday, media reports surfaced with regard to Saudi King Abdullah's scheduled visit to Damascus to hold talks with Assad concerning the political situation in Lebanon. Egypt's official Middle East News Agency (MENA) indicated that the visit of the Saudi king to Syria would take place on Monday.

Saudi Prince Abdel-Aziz and the kingdom's Information Minister Abdel-Aziz Khoja held another round of talks in the Syrian capital on Friday, media reports said. Khoja was the Saudi ambassador to Lebanon before being appointed as his country's information minister.  

MENA reported on Friday that talks between King Abdullah and Assad would focus on Lebanon given the ongoing efforts to from a unity cabinet.

The agency added that the meeting is expected to bridge the gap in Saudi-Syrian relations, which deteriorated after the assassination of Lebanon's former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri on February 14, 2005.

However, An-Nahar news paper said in a report published on Friday that Syrian conditions to facilitate the formation of the next government were "impossible to implement."

The report added that the basket of conditions proposed by Syria involved a visit by Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri to Damascus as part of a tripartite Lebanese-Syrian-Saudi summit prior to the Cabinet's formation.

Also on Friday, As-Safir newspaper said Hariri might visit Syria prior to Abdullah's meeting with Assad or might join the leaders' reunion.

Tackling Hariri's relations with Syria, the premier-designate's ally Progressive Socialist Party (PSP) head MP Walid Jumblatt told As-Safir on Friday that Hariri "can rule [Lebanon] but not against Syria" adding that "Hariri's governance is based on a Syrian-Saudi agreement."

He stressed that any "Syrian-Saudi consensus will lead to a Saudi-Iranian one, and keep Lebanon away from sectarian strife."

The PSP leader urged the Lebanese to refrain from "mistakenly" depending on deterioration in Syrian-Iranian relations, and advised Hariri to meet more frequently with Hizbullah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah and Speaker Nabih Berri.

Jumblatt also praised the efforts of the Lebanese Armed Forces following Sunday's clashes in Aisha Bakkar. The clashes between the Future Movement and Amal supporters left one woman bystander dead and wounded several others.

In other developments, Phalange Party leader Amin Gemayel said the normalization of ties with Syria should be "governed by clear rules and principles."

Gemayel in a statement on Friday stressed that the improvement of ties should draw from past mistakes and experiences. He added that Syria should provide Lebanon with a "set of guarantees," before relations between the two neighboring countries return back to normal.

According to Gemayel, one of the major guarantees is to have Syria press Palestinian groups outside refugee camps to hand their weapons to the Lebanese state. Another guarantee is to have Syria provide Lebanon with information regarding the Lebanese who went missing during the 1975-90 Civil War.

In other news, President Michel Sleiman said on Friday that a stable political and security situation in the country were crucial to the success of the tourism sector during the summer season.

He stressed that stability and security in Lebanon drew foreign investment, which in turn boosts the Lebanese economy.

The president also predicted an inflow of Lebanese expatriates, Arab and foreign tourists to visit the country in the next couple of months.

Separately, German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier will visit Israel on Monday before holding talks in Syria and Lebanon on Tuesday.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Andreas Peschke said in a news conference that Germany saw a "window of opportunity" in the region with regard to the peace process following the June 7 peaceful legislative elections in Lebanon and the improved Syrian-Lebanese bilateral relations.

Peschke stressed the important role of Israel's neighboring countries in reaching a peace resolution based on a two-state Israeli-Palestinian solution.

 

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