Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Monday that Lebanon should not be hostage to the Syrian crisis, during a joint news conference with Lebanese caretaker Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil in Moscow.
“We agreed to increase bilateral communication on some ways to coordinate. We have a common belief to make sure that Lebanon is not a hostage of the Syrian crisis,” Lavrov said in the televised remarks that followed a meeting with Bassil.
“We talked about the return of refugees and how they can return in a safe and dignified manner,” he added.
Bassil reiterated his position that “Lebanon refuses to tie the return of the refugees to the political solution [in Syria].”
He lauded Russia’s efforts to find a solution to the Syrian refugee crisis. “The Russian proposal is the first international proposal that encourages the return of refugees and Lebanon is committed to it fully. We discussed an enduring, open-ended communication between our ministries to ensure the success of this proposal,” he said.
He stressed that Lebanon needs to be a platform for the rebuilding of Syria and the backyard for its "economic regeneration."
Bassil also spoke of the need to strengthen bilateral ties with Russia, especially economically and militarily. He asked his counterpart to encourage Russian companies to participate in new tenders in Lebanon's potential oil reserves. Bassil said Russian success in this sector could bolster regional stability.
Prior to the news conference, local media reported that Lavrov said that Lebanon’s issues need to be resolved without foreign intervention.
Bassil is the fourth Lebanese politician to visit the Russian capital in recent weeks as Russia steps up its bid to find a solution to the Syrian refugee crisis.
In July, the Russian Defense Ministry announced it had sent a proposal to the United States for a joint plan to return refugees, which included establishing working groups in Lebanon and Jordan involving both U.S. and Russian officials. Lebanon has welcomed the proposal and high-level meetings between Lebanese and Russian delegations have since been held on the matter.
The Russian Defense Ministry had said that over 1.7 million Syrian refugees would be able to return to Syria in the near future, including a possible 890,000 from Lebanon.
This article has been adapted from its original source.
