LEBANON Prime minister assures bankers
BEIRUT — Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri assured regional bankers Thursday that Lebanon’s stability is his top concern, one day after walking back his shock resignation that threw his country into turmoil.
Hariri, speaking at the Arab Banking Conference in Beirut, said his government was going to prioritize Lebanon’s interests over regional challenges and stressed a return to the country’s official policy of “disassociation,” or neutrality in regional affairs.
“Our primary concern in Lebanon is stability, and that is what we are going to focus on,” said Hariri.
Hariri stunned Lebanon and the region by resigning on Nov. 4 while in Saudi Arabia, raising fears of market panic and recession.
But he told President Michel Aoun on Wednesday, Lebanon’s Independence Day, that he would stay on to allow for “consultations” that would seek to safeguard the tiny country’s delicate political system, stretched by competing agendas in Saudi Arabia and Iran.
Saudi Arabia is seen as the guardian of Lebanon’s Sunnis and is a main sponsor of its national government and military. Iran sponsors Lebanon’s Shiites and mostly funnels its funds and interests through the militant group Hezbollah.
Weighing in on Thursday, Iran’s powerful Revolutionary Guard chief, Gen. Mohammad Ali Jafari, said the issue of Hezbollah’s arms is “nonnegotiable.” He said Lebanon remains Israel’s first target, adding that therefore Hezbollah should be armed against it to maintain security in Lebanon.
In its first remarks since Hariri resumed his post, Hezbollah called the prime minister’s return “promising” and said it sends the signal that matters can “return to normal.” Hassan Fadlallah, a Hezbollah lawmaker, said Hariri’s Independence Day remarks could form the basis for efforts to find “appropriate” solutions to Lebanon’s crisis.