Lebanese President confers with Syrian FM
Lebanon-Syria, Politics, 5/19/2001

A message from President al-Assad President Emil Lahoud of Lebanon on Friday in Beirut received the Syrian foreign minister Farouk al-Shara' who delivered to him a message from President Bashar al-Assad.

The message dealt with developments in the region and the sisterly relations between the two states.

The speaker of the Lebanese parliament Nabih Berri, prime minister Rafik al-Hariri, foreign minister Mahmoud al-Hamoud attended the meeting.

Discussions between President Lahoud and al-Shara were completed during a luncheon held in honor of Al-Shara. During the meeting, the Lebanese President said that unity of the Lebanese- Syrian stand which is based on the two peoples's will is the only means in retaliation to Israel's threats against the two brotherly countries.

A statement issued by the Lebanese Republic Presidency said that President Lahoud asked al-Shara to convey a message to President Bashar al-Assad, stressing that view points between Syria and Lebanon concerning the developments of events in the region were identical.

The statement added these view points prove the correctness of the Syrian and Lebanese expectations regarding the Israeli clear decision of blocking and aborting the peace process in the light of israel's constant attacks against the Palestinian people.

The Lebanese President stressed the importance of adopting a unified Arab stand to confront Israel's challenges.

For his part, the Syrian foreign briefed President Lahoud on the results of President Bashar al-Assad's recent Arab tour and on the positive impressions of the Pope's visit to Syria it had left on the international circles except Israel which expressed dissatisfaction over the visit and feverishly tried to distort it.

The statement indicated that Lahoud's talks with the Syrian foreign minister dealt with ways of strengthening bilateral cooperation and coordination to confront the current situation in the region and with on- going contacts to tackle the deteriorating situation in the West Bank.

In a news conference held in Beirut on conclusion of the meeting, al-Shara said that among other issues discussed were latest grave developments in the Israeli- occupied Palestinian territories and Israel incessant attacks against the unarmed Palestinian people.

The Syrian foreign minister added that he had discussed with Lahoud bilateral relations, stressing there are new fields of more cooperation conducive to the consolidation of national unity in both Syria and Lebanon to the reactivation of pan- Arab solidarity.

The Syrian foreign minister continued that the " special Syrian- Lebanese ties are important, have impact on security and stability in the entire region and will, one day, bring a just and comprehensive peace in line with UN resolutions despite the anti- peace elements in Israel."

He added that Israel's conduct is belligerent while " our conduct is based on steadfastness and on a deep sense of responsibility. We will not accept the insult and succumb to Israel's will." He warned Israel against changing the rules of the game, making clear that if Israel tries to do so, Syria will resort to the rules she wants for this game as " time (is) with us."

Al- Shara indicated that "Syria's economy is solid and all her potentials are not used yet. Our confidence is based on consolidated elements and we are determined to modernize our economy. Thanks to those elements, we were able to stand firm against all challenges whether coming from Israel and other parties."

Previous Stories:
  Al-Assad talks on the telephone with Lahoud   (5/18/2001)
  Al-Assad confers with two Lebanese officials   (5/10/2001)
  Al-Hariri to visit Syria   (5/7/2001)

Please add a link on your webiste pointing to ArabicNews.com and bookmark ArabicNews.com & subscribe to our daily email news bulletin.

Search