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During a meeting with the head of the Lebanese Press Syndicate Joseph Kosseifi on Monday, Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri affirmed that he opposed any attempts to invalidate or undermine the Taif peace Agreement which ended 15 years of civil war in Lebanon.
Kosseifi quoted Berri, saying: “We lived and died until we accomplished this agreement, and I say to those who want to change it… sit down and think wisely.”
“Calls by some to change the political system places Lebanon at great risk. Let us implement this agreement in all its provisions, notably the reforms which include administrative decentralization, a non-sectarian electoral law, and the establishment of a Senate,” Berri told Kosseifi.
According to Kosseifi, Berri commented on the presidential deadlock and reiterated that “there is no solution except through consensus and dialogue,” stressing that internationalization of the issue requested by Maronite Patriarch Bechara Boutros Al-Rai “requires internal consensus, and that national dialogue is an option that should not be ignored by any party.”
Berri also said that he was awaiting French presidential envoy Jean-Yves Le Drian to return on a second visit in order to discuss the terms of a potential dialogue, including the place, form, and timing.
Focusing on the looming crisis of the governance of the Central Bank, following the end of Governor Riad Salame’s mandate at end of July, Kosseifi conveyed Berri’s opinion that “in all countries of the world, necessity allows what is prohibited,” and that “caretaking capacity (by the vice governor) does not mean, in any way, descending into a void.”
Bringing up the recent escalation of tensions along the Blue Line with Israel, triggered by Hezbollah’s move setting up two tents in the disputed village of Ghajar, Berri was quoted as saying: “The tents are located on Lebanese soil, and the international community should compel Israel to implement Resolution 1701 and withdraw from the northern part of Ghajar and the occupied Lebanese territories of Shebaa Farms and the Kfarchouba Hills.”
