Local News
Hizbullah's Resistance, Weapons and Relations with Syria Hamper Policy Statement
By Naharnet
Jul 23, 2008 - 4:19:36 AM

Three controversial topics have prevented agreement on a policy statement for the new cabinet: Hizbullah's resistance and its weapons; relations with Syria; and state sovereignty over its territories.
The various Lebanese factions, despite their differences, have managed to agree on a joint approach to tackling all other topics and challenges facing the nation.

Representatives of the March 14 majority in the nine-man committee trying to draft the cabinet's policy statement, want a clear-cut pledge that the resistance would be "absorbed" by the regular force, and that it does not have the right to decide on launching military operations in the Israeli-occupied Shebaa Farms and other sectors.

"Such a decision to go to war or peace should be taken by the government, and only by the government," a majority source told Naharnet.

However, such a trend was opposed by Hizbullah representative to the committee cabinet minister Mohammed Fneish who wanted to maintain Hizbullah's "right to liberate the farms and Kfar Shouba Hills by resistance operations," the source added.

As for the topic of relations with Syria, differences persisted over "priorities and whether the issue of border demarcation should top that of setting up diplomatic ties," the source added.

Spreading state authority over all Lebanese territories -which includes security, stability and social order- also is faced by Hizbullah's insistence on maintaining its "auto security" over several power bases and military installations, according to the source.

The pan-Arab daily al-Hayat said members of the committee agreed on Tuesday to review approaches to such differences with leaders of their factions.

It said President Michel Suleiman might move in through his representative at the committee, minister without portfolio Youssef Taqla, to work out some sort of a compromise that could be accepted by both March 14 and the Hizbullah-led minority.

Suleiman met Taqla on Tuesday apparently to discuss such a compromise approach by the President, who is to visit Syria at a later date to discuss with President Bashar Assad bilateral relations and other topics related to the Lebanon situation.

"Ministerial sources hope President Suleiman would propose settlements to some clauses (of the policy statement)," al-Hayat reported.