2023-09-01 20:36:01
Beirut, September 1, 2023 (Xinhua) – Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian affirmed that the restoration of relations between his country and Saudi Arabia would have a good impact on the level of the region and Lebanon.
“We evaluate positively the return of relations between Tehran and Riyadh to their normal states,” Abdullahian said in a press conference at the end of his visit to Lebanon today (Friday), referring to the entry of some other countries into a state of dialogue with Iran “whether openly or secretly, in order to restore relations to normal.” its natural form.
Abdallahian stressed that “Iran and Saudi Arabia have no intention of interfering and influencing the political decisions taken by Lebanese politicians.”
He added, “During my meetings with senior officials in Saudi Arabia, I heard some positions and visions related to many international affairs, including those related to Lebanon.”
Iran’s foreign minister visited Saudi Arabia regarding two weeks ago for the first time since the resumption of diplomatic relations between the two countries under an agreement brokered by China on March 10 to end a seven-year estrangement between Tehran and Riyadh.
On the other hand, Abdallahian affirmed “support for any consensus reached among Lebanese politicians.”
He said, “Iran has never interfered in Lebanon’s internal affairs,” stressing, “We reject any external interference that affects the political decisions taken by the Lebanese political elites, and we believe that the continuation of the interventions would further complicate the situation.”
He considered that the issues of finding a solution to the presidential vacuum, electing a president and forming a new government are “one of the sovereign decisions entrusted to the political leaders in Lebanon.”
Lebanon has been witnessing a presidential vacuum since last October 31, with the end of former President Michel Aoun’s term without electing a successor, as the political division and the lack of agreement by the parliamentary blocs on a consensual figure led to the parliament’s failure to elect a new president for the country.
Abdallahian pointed out that “external players can play an effective role in stimulating dialogue between Lebanese political leaders, and the internal Lebanese dialogue should be respected,” noting that “Lebanese leaders have always proven that they did not succumb to external pressures.”
On the other hand, Abdullahian indicated that the United States made “loose promises” to Lebanon to draw electricity from Jordan and gas from Egypt, but the issue did not reach a conclusion.
He said that he had discussed with the officials he met the issue of Iran’s support for Lebanon in the energy file, explaining that accepting Iranian donations needs a decision from the Lebanese government.
He added that as soon as Lebanon takes this decision, Iran is ready to send teams and equipment immediately to establish energy production plants in Lebanon with a capacity of 2000 megawatts.
Since the end of 2019, Lebanon has been witnessing a severe financial and economic crisis, which was embodied in the scarcity of foreign currency, the decline of the Lebanese pound, the rise in poverty rates, unemployment, inflation, and the rationing of electricity supplies.
On the Iranian nuclear agreement, he believed that “Iran has the political will that pushes all parties to return to the nuclear agreement.”
And he considered that “the indirect dialogue between Iran and the United States regarding the exchange of liberation and the release of prisoners and the release of some frozen Iranian assets will help in the dialogue on the nuclear agreement.”
Abdullahian had arrived yesterday in Beirut and held meetings with Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, Secretary General of Hezbollah Hassan Nasrallah, leaders of the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) and Islamic Jihad, and his Lebanese counterpart, Abdullah Bouhabib.
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