Geagea: Election of President Will Weaken Hizbullah in Lebanon
Head of the Lebanese Forces Samir Geagea accused Iran of thwarting the presidential elections in Lebanon through its ally Hizbullah, reported the pan-Arab daily al-Hayat on Wednesday.
He told the daily: “The presence of a president will weaken Hizbullah's role in Lebanon.”
He made his remarks from Saudi Arabia where he met with King Salman and a number of high-ranking Saudi officials, as well as Mustaqbal Movement chief MP Saad Hariri, in recent days.
“Iran wants a new president to serve Hizbullah's interests, not Lebanon's,” Geagea added.
“It is therefore exerting pressure to ensure the election of a president who agree with its views,” he explained to the daily.
“The rise of a Lebanese state is not among Iran's priorities,” he lamented.
“The vacuum in the presidency will continue as long as Iran's allies maintain their obstruction of the electoral process,” he noted.
Lebanon has been without a president since May 2014 when the term of Michel Suleiman ended without the election of a successor.
Disputes between the March 8 and 14 officials over a compromise candidate have thwarted attempts by the parliament to elect a successor.
Hizbullah's Loyalty to the Resistance and MP Michel Aoun's Change and Reform blocs have been boycotting the polls over the dispute.
Asked about the recent meeting between him and long-time rival Free Patriotic Movement chief MP Michel Aoun, Geagea responded: “The efforts that have been exerted to that end over the past six months have been largely successful.”
“They have wiped 30 years of disputes and changed the animosity between us to a rivalry between two political parties,” he remarked.
“We still have a long way to go however because of the long history of differences between us. We will exert all efforts to preserve the success,” he added.
More dialogue sessions between the LF and FPM will be held, especially since they have differing views on a number of affairs, Geagea stated.
The LF and FPM signed on June 2 a landmark declaration of intent, in a move aimed at ending around 30 years of rivalry between the two Christian parties.
The stipulations of the document were announced after a meeting between Geagea and Aoun.
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