Portolano Highlights UNIFIL Cooperation with Army in Talks with Berri, Qahwaji
The Head of Mission and Force Commander of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon, Major General Luciano Portolano held talks on Thursday with Speaker of Parliament Nabih Berri and the Army Commander, General Jean Qahwaji, said UNIFIL in a statement.
Portolano briefed the speaker on the situation along the Blue Line and UNIFIL’s engagement with the people of South Lebanon in efforts, together with Lebanese army, to maintain security and stability in the area within the framework of U.N. Security Council resolution 1701.
Following the meeting with Berri, the UNIFIL commander said: “I am ever grateful to the honorable speaker for his personal attention to UNIFIL’s concerns and his support to our mission in the best interests of the people of the South and the country as a whole.”
“I expressed my deep appreciation for the understanding and support UNIFIL, and I personally, have been receiving from the local institutions and religious leaders. UNIFIL highly values the strong relationship with the local authorities and l look forward to the same level of collaboration with the elected municipal representatives on completion of the ongoing electoral process.”
“I assured the speaker of UNIFIL’s firm resolve to pursue its mandated tasks, working closely with the Lebanese army and other partners on the ground. The results of our combined efforts have been amply evident in the continued overall calm and stability that has prevailed in the area under very challenging circumstances. It is important that we stay the course, and I was very encouraged by the speaker’s appreciation of this imperative and his expression of Lebanon’s commitment to this shared objective.”
In a separate meeting with Qahwaji earlier on Thursday, Portolano discussed the situation in UNIFIL’s area of operations, collaboration with the army and issues related to the implementation of UNIFIL’s mandate under resolution 1701.
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