France's Kouchner warns of 'dangerous' Middle East - Summary

Sat, 06 Nov 2010

Beirut - French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner used a visit to Lebanon Saturday to warn of an increasingly dangerous situation in Middle East politics.

His warning came as tensions rose in Lebanon over the imminent publication of a UN special tribunal report into the 2005 assassination of Rafik Hariri, and the possible collapse of talks between the Israelis and Palestinians.

Kouchner, concluding a two-day visit, reiterated French support for an independent and sovereign Lebanon.

"I came to Beirut to remind the Lebanese authorities of France's support Lebanon's independence and the national unity government headed by (prime Minister Saad) Hariri," Kouchner said.

Kouchner failed to meet with Lebanon's Shiite House Speaker Nabih Berri.

There has been speculation in Beirut that Berri refused to meet Kouchner because of the mounting disquiet in Lebanon over the tribunal, due to report by the end of the week and rumored to recommend indicting Hezbollah members of the murder.

Referring to a question on why he did not meet with Berri, Kouchner stated: "Berri and I are friends, and he is not here today."

According to local press reports, Berri, a close ally of Hezbollah, did not hold talks with Kouchner because of a row over the tribunal.

Kouchner, who arrived in Beirut Friday, has questioned the growing controversy in Lebanon over the UN tribunal - which may indict members of Hizbollah of the car-bomb assassination.

"The Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) was born out of an international decision and with the approval of the international community," Kouchner stressed after meeting the head of the Lebanese Maronite Christian community, Patriarch Nasrallah Sfeir.

Kouchner cautioned during his talks with Lebanese officials that the situation in the whole Middle East region, "is dangerous."

The French official has met with Lebanese president Michel Suleiman, Prime Minister Saad Hariri and other Christian and Muslim officials.

He also met with Hezbollah foreign relations official Ammar al Mussawi.

According to a statement, Mussawi stressed during his talks with Kouchner, that "the US and its allies are using the Tribunal to try to weaken the Lebanese resistance (Hezbollah)."

"Israel was the main beneficiary from the Hariri assassination, especially after this assassination soured the Lebanese-Syrian relations and also divided Lebanon," the Hezbollah statement quoted Mussawi as telling Kouchner.

Hariri was assassinated in a bomb blast on February 14, 2005. His death led to wide-scale demonstrations against Syria, which was at first blamed for the Hariri killing.

The demonstrations led Syria to end its 30-year military presence in its small neighbor and soured relations between the two neighboring countries.

Source: Earth Times.
Link: http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/news/352272,middle-east-summary.html.