Syria announces withdrawal plan from Lebanon
Syria-Lebanon, Politics, 3/5/2005

The Syrian deputy foreign minister Walid al-Muallim announced that Damascus will disclose shortly what he described a fixed plan to withdraw its forces from Lebanon.

He renewed his country's commitment to implement the Taif accord and the UN Security Council resolution 1559 that calls for the withdrawal of foreign forces from Lebanon and which does not set a precise time schedule for such a withdrawal. Following talks in Moscow with the Russian foreign minister Sergy Lavrov, the Syrian deputy foreign minister expressed his hope on the approval of the UN Security Council of the plan which he had discussed with the Russian officials.

Lavrov, for his part said that Moscow is pleased with the measures to be taken by the Syrian side, noting that the Syrian plan coincides with the UN Security Council resolution.

The visit of al-Muallim to Moscow came at a time when Syrian diplomats were deployed in various parts of the world to make consultations on means of reacting to the increasing pressures to pull out the Syrian forces from Lebanon following the assassination of the former Lebanese prime minister Rafic Hariri on February 14.

The statements of the Syrian official came hours after the announcement made by a Lebanese minister in the resigned government, who refused to be identified, that the Syrian President Bashar Assad will announce today ( Saturday) a partial withdrawal for his army towards the Bekaa plain in line with the Taif accord. This will be prior to the Arab summit due on March 23 in Algiers.

The Lebanese minister explained that declaring a complete Syria withdrawal from Lebanon will be linked to political interventions, noting that Damascus wants international and regional consultations and guarantees to revive the peace process before thinking of complete withdrawal.

These developments came after the Syrian official news agency SANA said that President Bashar al-Assad will deliver a speech today before the People's Assembly ( parliament) in which he will deal with current political developments. SANA gave no other details about al-Assad's speech.

Previous Stories:
  Lebanese Islamic Council: relations with Syria are strong   (3/4/2005)
  Syrian reinforcements in the Bekaa   (3/4/2005)
  Islamic Shiite Council defends ties with Syria   (3/3/2005)

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