The Trump administration's senior adviser on Arab and Middle Eastern affairs, Massad Boulos. (Credit: Screenshot YouTube/Sky News)
Lebanon has been without a president since Oct. 31, 2022, when Michel Aoun's term ended., But, for Lebanese American Massad Boulos, whom U.S. President-elect Donald Trump appointed as senior adviser on Arab and Middle Eastern Affairs, “The Lebanese can wait another two or three months to do things properly, as part of a comprehensive agreement.” In an exclusive interview with French magazine Le Point, Boulos emphasized, "We must not hurry to elect anyone anyhow.”
‘The Lebanese can wait another two or three months’
Boulos’ comments came after Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri scheduled a new parliamentary session for the election of a president on Jan. 9, 2025.
“I believe they have time. On Jan. 9, it will be two years and two months since Lebanon last had a president. In my opinion, the Lebanese can wait another two or three months to do things properly, as part of a comprehensive agreement. We must not hurry to elect anyone anyhow. On the contrary, we must try to ensure the participation of the absolute majority of Lebanon’s elected representatives and not obtain the election of a president with only 65 votes,” he said to journalist Armin Arefi.
Asked about the notion of a “comprehensive agreement,” the Lebanese American businessman replied that it is an “agreement that will include all the reforms needed to rebuild Lebanon and its judicial and security institutions, respect for democracy and the Lebanese Constitution, as well as the implementation of the cease-fire agreement.”
He said that “all these aspects are very important” and that “it will also be necessary to have a certain vision of the Cabinet and to know who will chair it, which parties will be represented and what their restructuring program will be, including on the economic and fiscal levels.”
“Finally, we must ensure that the opposition, which today makes up almost half of Parliament, is well represented,” he added.
Cease-fire in Lebanon
Boulos, father of one of President Trump's sons-in-law, reflected on the “historic” cease-fire agreement between Lebanon and Israel, which came into force on Nov. 27, after more than 13 months of fighting between Israel and Hezbollah and two months of full-scale war in Lebanon.
He reiterated the remarks he had made during an interview with al-Jadeed TV station on Nov. 28, emphasizing that the agreement does not only provide for the implementation of U.N. Resolution 1701 (2006), which calls for the withdrawal of Hezbollah from south of the Litani River, but goes so far as to explicitly include Resolution 1559 (2004).
“There was a misunderstanding at the beginning, especially in Lebanon, where it was believed that the cease-fire only covered the region south of the Litani River, but this is not true at all.” According to Boulos, the text covers the whole country and calls for “the disarmament of all armed groups, militias and paramilitary groups.”
Hostages in Gaza
Besides the Lebanese issue, the future adviser raised several points regarding the foreign policy to be adopted by the Trump administration. “The aim is to achieve lasting peace in the Middle East. We have four years to work, and we hope to achieve something that will be sustainable for the future and for generations to come,” Boulos said.
Regarding the release of Israeli hostages held by Hamas, he explained it would take place as part of a “temporary cease-fire.”
“The war is practically over. There is virtually no major military activity anymore,” he added, without elaborating on the vision for the Palestinian enclave after the Israeli-led war that killed more than 40,000 people in Gaza.
Abraham Accords
Boulos reaffirmed that the Abraham Accords, which President Trump brokered during his first term in 2017, remain a “priority” for the future administration, adding that it aims to normalize ties between Saudi Arabia and Israel. The Kingdom had declared that there would be no diplomatic relations with Israel before the creation of a Palestinian state.
“We must remember that Saudi Arabia is not demanding the creation of a Palestinian state today but is asking for the establishment of a vision and a roadmap on this subject, that's all. If you look at the plan that was proposed in 2020 by President Trump [‘The Deal of the Century’], it referred very clearly to a possible Palestinian state,” the future adviser said.
Will Assad be reinstated?
Since Nov. 27, a large-scale offensive has been underway in Syria, led by the jihadist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and rebel factions opposing the Assad regime, who have recaptured the city of Aleppo.
In this context, the journalist asked Boulos whether the Trump administration would seek to “facilitate a transition of power in Damascus or, on the contrary, reinstate Bashar al-Assad.” Boulos simply replied, “I can't tell you.”
Regarding Tehran's nuclear program, he reiterated that “President Trump has made it very clear that he absolutely does not want Iran to have a nuclear program,” but that he was “ready to engage in serious negotiations with the current regime.”
This article was originally published in French in L'Orient Le-Jour.
