Image: Daily Beirut (source article)
Rajji tells Lebanese in Bahrain the state will not back down on its arms decisions
The foreign minister met the Lebanese community and UAE adviser Anwar Gargash on the sidelines of the Manama Dialogue.
Foreign Minister Joe Rajji told members of the Lebanese community in Bahrain on Sunday that the government "is determined and will not back down from its decisions" to restrict weapons to the state, L'Orient Today reported, citing the National News Agency.
Rajji said Lebanon had taken "courageous decisions" on state-only arms, but that implementation was not complete because of the stance of armed groups. He was speaking on the sidelines of the 22nd Manama Dialogue, where he also met Anwar Gargash, diplomatic adviser to the president of the United Arab Emirates, to review the situation in Lebanon and the region.
In remarks at the forum reported by Daily Beirut, Rajji said Lebanon had begun "a political and institutional path aimed at restoring the authority of the state and rebuilding its full sovereignty." The cabinet's decisions banning Hezbollah's military and security activity were "a clear national choice to end the duality of military and security authority," he said, and applied to armed organisations "regardless of their identity or affiliations."
He also declared Lebanon's solidarity with the Gulf states "in the face of Iranian aggressions and those carried out by armed groups linked to Iran."
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