Lebanese Forces oppose Berri's proposed dialogue

BEIRUT — Samir Geagea's Lebanese Forces on Tuesday morning expressed their refusal of a dialogue proposal that some anticipate Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri will present on Thursday after the tenth parliamentary session devoted to the presidential election.

On Monday, Geagea had told a Saudi newspaper that his party would participate in the dialogue on condition that Berri keeps parliamentary electoral sessions open and continues voting rounds even if some MPs walk out during the meeting.

At the nine parliamentary sessions to date dedicated to electing Aoun's successor, Lebanese MPs have failed to elect a new president. This is largely due to the lack of consensus on a candidate between the assorted political groups — such consensus is customary in Lebanon prior to Parliament succeeding in electing a new president. A new session is scheduled for Thursday at 11 a.m.

In a statement issued following Geagea's remarks, the LF sounded their "refusal of any call for dialogue." Geagea's party called on Berri to "withdraw his call for dialogue" and "to hold open sessions until a president is elected."

Geagea, on the other hand, was quoted by the Saudi newspaper Oukaz in its Tuesday edition as saying, "If the speaker of parliament opens the session and no president is elected in the first round, and if he later announces that the session will remain open to engage in a dialogue in parliament with the party leaders to solve the problems before continuing the electoral process, then we will be open to this kind of consultation."

"We know that in the framework of the presidential elections, the dialogue consists of discussions on the side about what is said behind the scenes in order to convince [the MPs] to elect a candidate, instead of it taking place around a formal dialogue table," the LF leader said. "I therefore consider this a clear attempt to maintain the stalemate of the presidential election."

Geagea's Christian rival and leader of the Free Patriotic Movement, Gebran Bassil, said on Sunday that his party could participate in the dialogue, although it had previously refused such a proposal. "For the dialogue to succeed, it needs to be prepared. A failure would be catastrophic," he warned.

The LF leader also told the Saudi newspaper that he does not have a "veto" on the candidacy of the commander in chief of the Lebanese Army Joseph Aoun, although the latter has not formalized his candidacy.

According to an Arab diplomat who requested anonymity, Joseph Aoun's visit to Qatar last week, in response to an official invitation from the Qatari deputy prime minister and head of diplomacy, goes far beyond the technical aspect of financial support to the military institution and was political in nature.