Borrell continues his tour in Beirut, says regional escalation 'not inevitable'

European Union Foreign Minister Josep Borrell said on Thursday from Beirut that a wider war in the region was "not inevitable," and called for the "full implementation of resolution 1701" of the U.N. Security Council.

Borrell has been in Lebanon since yesterday, as part of a tour that also took him to Egypt earlier this week. At a press conference at the Lebanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, he said that "the wars in Syria and Gaza have negative repercussions for Lebanon," deploring that, since his last visit to Beirut last January, "the drums of war have not stopped beating."

Saying that he "wants to limit a military escalation" in the region, he called on all parties in Lebanon to "act for the good of Lebanon and the Lebanese, and not for the interests of third parties," in a possible allusion to the pro-Iranian Hezbollah, which opened a "support" front in Gaza on Oct. 8, 2023.

'Preparing the ground for a global settlement'

"The full implementation of resolution 1701 should prepare the ground for a comprehensive settlement" in Lebanon, he further stressed. This Security Council resolution taken in 2006 ended the previous conflict between Israel and Hezbollah. It provides in particular for a withdrawal of Hezbollah towards the north of the Litani River. An international decision that official Lebanon claims to support, on condition that Israel also commits to respecting its part, by ceasing violations of Lebanese airspace. "War is not inevitable" and avoiding it is a question of "the will to avoid it," added the diplomat.

"We must continue to work for a comprehensive peace in the region," he said.

Josep Borrell in Beirut, Sept. 12, 2024. (Credit: Mohammad Yassine/L'Orient-Le Jour)

Regarding the political crisis in Lebanon, which is approaching the end of its second year without a president, Borrell said that institutions "including the presidency and the government must resume its function."

'The ability to defend oneself'

Earlier in the day, Borrell met with caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati and Parliamentary Speaker Nabih Berri.

During his meeting with Berri, the latter, according to a statement from his press office, expressed his “appreciation for the humanitarian positions taken by Borrell” since the start of the Gaza war.

“Lebanon does not want war but has the right and the capacity to defend itself,” Berri told the EU representative.

Borrell also met in Yarzeh with the head of the Lebanese army, Joseph Aoun. 

The head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrell, received by the President of the Chamber, Nabih Berry, in Aïn al-Tineh, on Sept. 12, 2024. (Credit: Mohammad Yassine/L'Orient-Le Jour)

On Wednesday, after his arrival, Borrell went to the headquarters of the U.N. Interim Force in South Lebanon (UNIFIL) in Naqoura, to meet with peacekeepers, including from 16 different European Union countries, the U.N. force reported in a brief statement.

"The support of the European Union (EU) for the Lebanese people and for a diplomatic solution" to the ongoing clashes between Hezbollah and the Israeli army, "within the framework of Resolution 1701, is essential to restore stability," it said.

Borrrell also met yesterday evening with Walid Joumblatt, father of the president of the Progressive Socialist Party (PSP) Taymour Joumblatt. Walid Joumblatt welcomed, during the meeting, the positions taken by Borrell since the beginning of the Gaza war, eleven months ago.

Borrell's mission "is part of the EU's continued regional action to prevent further escalation" in the region, a statement released by Brussels earlier this week said.

"This visit takes place in the context of the war in Gaza, where the dire humanitarian situation and the fate of the hostages make an urgent ceasefire even more critical ... The EU's support for Lebanon's resilience and stability, as well as its regional role, will be discussed with a range of national and international stakeholders, including the United Nations," the text stated.

This article originally appeared in French in L'Orient-Le Jour.