Lebanese, Russian FMs discuss political developments

By Wassim Saif al-Din

BEIRUT (AA) - Lebanese Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil on Tuesday had a phone conversation with Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov with whom he discussed recent developments pertaining to Lebanon and the wider Middle East.

According to a Lebanese Foreign Ministry statement, the phone conversation touched on “the importance of preserving Lebanon’s security without linking it to other regional issues”.

The two men also reportedly discussed Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri’s ongoing struggle to form a new government.

Since May 6 parliamentary polls, Lebanon’s government-formation process has faced repeated delays, with mutual recriminations between the country’s main political forces and demands by certain parties for greater representation.

In Tuesday’s phone conversation, Bassil and Lavrov also reportedly discussed the crisis in Syria, the need to establish a viable constitution-drafting committee there, and the need to repatriate displaced Syrian refugees.

According to the Foreign Ministry statement, they also discussed reconstruction of post-war Syria “with a focus on the important role that Lebanon can play in this regard”.