Assadakah News - House Speaker, Nabih Berri, expressed Lebanon’s reservations regarding the report of the Political Committee of the Arab Inter-Parliamentary Union Conference held in Cairo in its 32nd session under the title of “Arab Solidarity”.
The House Speaker said in an intervention, “I think we’re meeting in this conference under the title of Arab Solidarity. Where is the solidarity in this report? Where is the Arab Common Market?”. He went on to wonder, “Where is our solidarity confronting terrorism?” suggesting Arab coordination over this matter, with Cairo being the headquarters for coordination.
Berri then pushed for an Arab Parliamentary Union conference to start a Lebanese dialogue with Arab Gulf states under the auspices of Kuwait. He also reminded the Arab League of “the necessity of Syria's return to the League without hesitation”.
The House speaker also appealed to the Palestinians to take the initiative to achieve Palestinian-Palestinian reconciliation under Egyptian auspices. "Last but not least, fighting in Yemen should end and dialogue between all its components should begin” he added.
Berri, said that “Lebanon is committed to holding the elections with all transparency, away from any pressures, and absolutely rejects any attempt to postpone them.”
Speaker Berri also called on the Arab Inter-Parliamentary Union to participate through forming a committee to oversee the electoral process. Moreover, Berri affirmed, "Lebanon's keenness to build the best relations with all its Arab brothers, on the basis of mutual respect for the independence, sovereignty, security, stability and independence of states". He reiterated Lebanon's adherence and commitment to implementing the Taif Agreement “as a framework regulating relations among the Lebanese".
Berri also voiced "Lebanon's support for the existing dialogue endeavors between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Islamic Republic of Iran under Iraqi auspices," hoping that "this dialogue will yield positive results for the interest of the two countries and as such the interests of the Arab and Islamic nations and the peoples of the region”.
Turning to Arab affairs, Berri underlined that “Syria must return to its position and its role in the official Arab system,” considering that “Arabism remains incomplete without Syria, which was and will remain in terms of status, role and strategy, a mandatory passageway to achieving Arab solidarity”.