US Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Jeffrey Feltman continued his meetings with several Lebanese officials, with his main focus on the Syrian crisis and Lebanon’s 2013 parliamentary elections.
US Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Jeffrey Feltman continued his meetings with several Lebanese officials, with his main focus on the Syrian crisis and Lebanon’s 2013 parliamentary elections.
Citing officials who met Fletman, Lebanese daily an-Nahra said the US official stressed “the importance of avoiding the repercussions of the events in Syria on Lebanon’s stability, and the necessity of providing Syrian refugees in Lebanon with the required support”.
The daily added that the US official “underlined the importance of staging the 2013 parliamentary elections on time”.
On Thursday, Fletman held talks with President Michel Sleiman and he was scheduled to meet with Premier Najib Miqati
Earlier on Wednesday, Feltman, accompanied by U.S. Ambassador Maura Connelly, met with Speaker Nabih Berri, Lebanese Forces chief Samir Geagea and Maronite Archbishop of Beirut Boulos Matar.
He also met with several March 14 figures as he was received at the dinner in MP Botrous Harb.
On Tuesday night Feltman met the head of National Struggle Front MP Walid Jumblatt.
Meanwhile, as-Safir daily said that the talks between Berri and Feltman focused on the Lebanese exploration of gas and oil, in which the Speaker stressed Lebanon’s right to explore oil in its exclusive economic zone.
Berri told the US official that both the March 8 majority coalition and the March 14 opposition alliance agree on stability and reject the smuggling of arms to Syria through the Lebanese-Syrian border, according to the daily.
A US embassy statement said Wednesday that Feltman expressed Washington’s “steadfast support for pluralistic and democratic governments in the region that protect the rights of all citizens, including ethnic and religious minorities”.
LIEBERMAN IN NORTHERN BORDER
Meanwhile, US Senator Joseph Lieberman visited the northern border with Syria at the Bqayaa crossing of Wadi Khaled, as he “criticized” the region’s countries for “not doing enough” to support the Syrian opposition.
The US Senator advocated further US intervention in Syria, including the arming of groups against the regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad.
A US Embassy statement said Lieberman also held a meeting with Sleiman. He met with Jumblatt along with Feltman on Tuesday.
“In his meetings, the senator discussed bilateral relations and the situation in Syria”, the statement said.
Lieberman arrived in Beirut on Tuesday from Saudi Arabia where he held talks with King Abdullah and other senior officials as part of a Middle East tour to discuss the Syria crisis.
