| Saad Hariri continues the work of his murdered father This afternoon, according to Vremya Novostei, President Vladimir Putin will receive prominent Lebanese politician Saad Hariri at the Bocharov Ruchey residence in Sochi. He is the youngest son of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, who died on February 14, 2005 in Beirut. The eldest sons, Baga and Ayman, continued their father's business legacy, while Saad entered politics.
The 36-year-old Hariri Jr., head of the March 14 Movement coalition ruling Lebanon, needs Russian support at a time when there is no unity in his country on how to further build relations with neighboring Syria. The guest believes that Moscow can influence Damascus. Saad Hariri continues the line of his father, who advocated an end to Syrian interference in the internal affairs of Lebanon. Considering the tragic death of Hariri Sr., the Russian Federal Security Service will take the Lebanese under special guardianship.
According to the adviser to the Lebanese politician on Russian affairs, Mr. George Shaaban, the delegation will visit not only Sochi, but also Moscow. In the capital, Saad Hariri will meet with Security Council Secretary Igor Ivanov, Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov, and President of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry Yevgeny Primakov.
Saad Hariri arrives in Russia two days after the UN Security Council adopted resolution No. 1680 on relations between Lebanon and Syria. The international community criticizes Damascus for not fully complying with the requirements of the previous UN Security Council Resolution No. 1559 (adopted in the fall of 2004). The initiators of criticism are the USA, France and Great Britain. “The new resolution clearly requires Syria to delimit the border with Lebanon and exchange diplomatic representation with it,” explained US Ambassador to the UN John Bolton. The Syrians felt so at ease in Lebanon that they did not even bother to open their embassy in Beirut, and vice versa. The countries are also undecided about who owns the small mountain heights known as Shebaa Farms.
But Russia believes that the Syrians have already done a lot. So, they withdrew their troops from Lebanon, which had been there since 1976. Therefore, Russia and China abstained from voting on the resolution, which was perceived by the Syrians as a “provocation.” “The Russian delegation did not see the point in adopting this new resolution,” Russia’s permanent representative to the UN, Vitaly Churkin, explained yesterday.
The ruling Lebanese March 14 Movement speaks favorably of the resolution. According to its leaders, the Syrians continue to intrigue in Lebanon. An example is the anti-government demonstration in Beirut last week. The demonstration received the support of the pro-Syrian Shiite movements Hezbollah and Amal, as well as their ally, the leader of Lebanese Christians Michel Aoun. The latter demands the resignation of the government led by Fouad al-Siniora from the March 14 Movement. However, opponents of the Syrian presence hint that such demonstrations are part of Damascus's plan to subjugate the executive branch in Lebanon to its will.
The March 14 Movement came to power as a result of the 2005 parliamentary elections. These elections and the preceding withdrawal of Syrian troops from Lebanon somewhat deflated the crisis that arose after the assassination of Rafik Hariri. His motorcade was blown up in the center of Beirut, and suspicion fell on the Syrian intelligence services. Exactly a month after the murder, a mass demonstration took place in Beirut on March 14, 2005, the participants of which demanded that the Syrians withdraw their troops from Lebanon, which happened more than a month later. Elena SUPONINA, Alexander SAMOKHOTKIN |
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