UN Secretary General Antonió Guterres at the G20 summit in Bali, Indonesia, on Nov. 15, 2022. (Credit: Russian Foreign Ministry/Handout via Reuters)
NEW YORK — UN Secretary General Antonió Guterres expressed his "concern" over the political crisis and the executive power vacuum in Lebanon, saying the country "cannot afford another political stalemate."
Guterres' statement was made before a sixth parliamentary session devoted to the election of a new head of state, which ended in another failure.
In his latest quarterly report on the implementation of UN Security Council resolution 1701 (2006), Guterres expressed concern "that no government has been formed since the appointment of Najib Mikati as prime minister in June, and that no new president has been elected to succeed President Michel Aoun."
"The country cannot afford another political stalemate or such an executive vacuum," he said, while "calling on the political actors to work together to adopt a constructive and flexible approach in order to prioritize the national interest and respect their constitutional obligations."
The secretary-general's latest report provides a comprehensive assessment of the implementation of Security Council resolution 1701 (2006) from June 21 to Nov. 2, 2022. It will be discussed in a Security Council meeting on Nov. 28.
In his report, Guterres also called on Lebanon and Israel to resume talks on the delineation of their land border, following the agreement reached on the demarcation of their maritime border in October. "The UN remains ready to support such a process if requested by the parties and within its capacity and mandate," he added.
Accelerating the implementation of reforms
Furthermore, the UN chief "urged all political, economic and financial actors to accelerate the implementation of reforms that meet the needs and aspirations of the Lebanese people."
He also expressed his concern about the presence of unauthorized weapons in the area between the Litani River and the Blue Line in southern Lebanon and suggested that "the outstanding issues of the resolution and the question of the national defense strategy be addressed in the framework of a national dialogue."
Regarding the continuing incidents along the Blue Line, the UN chief warned of a risk of escalation with "serious consequences," noting however a "certain improvement" in the situation. He welcomed the intervention of the Lebanese authorities to facilitate UNIFIL's access to the Blue Line, near sites where containers and other infrastructure have been installed by Hezbollah.
On the other hand, Israeli overflights of Lebanese airspace remain "of great concern and constitute violations of the resolution that undermine Lebanese sovereignty and the credibility of UNIFIL," he added.