Lebanese President Michel Suleiman on Tuesday launched the Conference on National dialogue with a call to adopt a defense strategy "based on our armed forces and benefiting from the resistance capabilities."
"Let us adopt a defense strategy that guarantees our points of strength, including diplomacy," Suleiman told the 14 participants in the conference and Arab League Secretary General Amr Moussa.
According to Naharnet, he called the participants to work out a "framework for dialogue in a way that shows that nothing is closed" to discussion. "Failure is banned," Suleiman declared.
He also urged them to "make sacrifices and concessions … for Lebanon." Suleiman also called for "reconciliation among participants in the dialogue." "We are a small and pluralist nation that has no other option but to remain united," Suleiman stressed.
Israel, according to the Lebanese leader, remains Lebanon's basic enemy "it occupies our land and threatens us."
Hizbullah leader Hassan Nasrallah did not attend the meeting for "security reasons".
