Posted on 03/08/2015 4:52:17 AM PDT by piasa
BEIRUT: U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has said that the election of a president in Lebanon hinges on the success of a nuclear deal between his country and Iran, Al-Mustaqbal newspaper claimed Sunday, however figures cited in the report later denied the diplomat made such remarks.
“Diplomatic sources in Paris” told Al-Mustaqbal that Kerry informed Boulos Matar, the Maronite bishop of Beirut, during a Saturday meeting between the two in Paris that an end may be in sight to Lebanon’s nine-month-long presidential vacuum.
The report claimed the meeting lasted for 45 minutes.
“Washington is optimistic that a Lebanese president will be elected within two months after a nuclear deal with Iran is concluded,” Kerry was quoted as saying.
However, Matar Sunday denied the report and said that his meeting with Kerry only lasted four minutes. The bishop said that Kerry only expressed his country's concern with Lebanon’s presidential vacuum but did not promise a near-end to the crisis.
A statement released by the Central Maronite Council Sunday confirmed that a meeting took place between Matar and Kerry alongside the president of the CMC, Wadih al-Khazen, in Paris Saturday.
According to the statement, they discussed the Christian presence in Lebanon and the Middle East, and the presidential election, with Kerry urging all sides to elect a president as soon as possible.
Talks between the United States and Iran over its controversial nuclear program began in late 2013. The deadline to reach a deal is March 31.
Kerry met with Iranian negotiators for three days last week in Switzerland. The next round of talks is scheduled for March 15.
- See more at: http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Lebanon-News/2015/Mar-08/290001-kerry-says-lebanon-president-crisis-to-end-after-iran-nuclear-deal-report.ashx#sthash.DQ5zaVkq.dpuf
Kerry has said that the election of a president in Lebanon hinges on the success of a nuclear deal between his country and Iran... "Washington is optimistic that a Lebanese president will be elected within two months after a nuclear deal with Iran is concluded," Kerry was quoted as saying. However, Matar Sunday denied the report and said that his meeting with Kerry only lasted four minutes. The bishop said that Kerry only expressed his country's concern with Lebanon's presidential vacuum but did not promise a near-end to the crisis... According to the statement, they discussed the Christian presence in Lebanon and the Middle East, and the presidential election, with Kerry urging all sides to elect a president as soon as possible.Yeah, right -- Kerry doesn't care about Christians in the Middle East or anywhere else. It's more likely that the Lebanese brought it up, and he got on his usual high horse and made some stupid remark like the one reported, but with a knife-twist to the Lebanese.
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Is there not a rule in Lebanon that the President of that country HAS to be a Christian and that the PM has to be a Muslim? Just wondering.
Two-months after a nuke deal with Iran is signed, it will be obvious that Iran has the upper hand in the region, and it will take them that long to designate their Lebanese puppet.
The previous constitution had that requirement; the Lebanese polity was disrupted in the 1950s by the assholes in Damascus, and that was straightened out after Eisenhower sent in the Marines and basically told Syria to knock it off. Very non-Eisenhower approach. Anyway, after the PLO invaded Lebanon (they were running for their lives from the Jordanian army) and destroyed the peace there, the Syrian regime took advantage of that and, with the blessings of the Arab League, invaded and occupied Lebanon for 30 years.
yup
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