Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri of the opposition and parliamentary majority leader Saad Hariri said Friday, a day after their first meeting in months to end the political deadlock in Lebanon, that they have agreed on some topics, but that other issues needed further consultations.
A joint statement issued Friday by the two leaders said a "positive" atmosphere prevailed over the "frank" talks.
That, the statement added, "reflected agreement on the need to deal with the crisis to reach practical exits that can guarantee the return to normal life, activate the national economy and defuse political tension."
"Viewpoints during the meeting were identical regarding a number of topics. However, other topics need further consultations and discussions with a positive approach. Speaker Berri and MP Hariri agreed on further discussions at a meeting to be held very soon," the statement added.
As Safir newspaper quoted Berri as telling visitors half an hour before the talks commenced that the significance of the summit was not the meeting itself, but the ability to come out with "a positive, mutual stand that would reassure the Lebanese about their present and future."
It also quoted Hariri as telling reporters shortly before arriving at Ain el-Tineh that he was as optimistic as the Speaker. Hariri announced that he was seeking a solution for a crisis "that has gone for long."
"We should get out of it in a way that there is no victor and no vanquished," he told reporters.
