Lebanon’s Foreign Minister Youssef Rajji. (Credit: NNA)
BEIRUT — Amid ongoing and sensitive discussions regarding Hezbollah's military arsenal, Foreign Minister Youssef Rajji claimed that the party does not want to disarm during an interview published Wednesday in Quds al-Arabi.
Hezbollah does not “want arms to be monopolized by the state," Rajji said, "and are attempting to set a limit that no one should cross, neither the prime minister nor the president,” adding plainly that Hezbollah does "not want to give up its weapons."
In the interview, Rajji — aligned with the Lebanese Forces, Hezbollah's primary opponent in the political sphere — reaffirmed his own "commitment to the state’s monopoly on arms" and responded to Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem's continued advocacy for the "army, people, and resistance" formula by saying: “He can say whatever he wants, but the Lebanese people no longer accept this wooden formula — it’s over,” Raji said, asserting: “The Lebanese state does not negotiate on its sovereignty. Hezbollah is an armed group outside the law — it is not legitimate.”
Hezbollah MP Ibrahim Moussawi criticized Rajji's remarks regarding the "army, people and resistance" formula.
"We offer them gold, and they cling to wood! A straw obstructs their eyes, preventing them from seeing this gold, this golden equation: army, people, resistance," said Moussawi at an event in the southern Lebanese city of Saida.
"We would have preferred, and so would the people, to hear from him words about the Israeli occupation, about Israeli aggression, about the daily murders committed by Israel. It's an absolute disgrace."
'The ice is broken' with Gulf countries
Rajji also spoke about repaired Lebanon-Gulf relations, saying it "wasn't just my efforts," but also the efforts of President Joseph Aoun and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam "and the entire Cabinet."
"Arab nations have reopened their doors to us, received us warmly, and we hope they’ll reciprocate visits," Rajji said. "The ice is broken — they really like us. We made mistakes with them in the past, but hopefully, everything is back on track.”
Relations with the petromonarchies of the Persian Gulf were strained by their dissatisfaction with Hezbollah's influence over Lebanese politics. The new government and Hezbollah's weakened state following the war created conditions for a warming of those relations. Aoun has already traveled to Riyadh, where he was received lavishly by Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman, before being followed by Salam, who visited during the Eid al-Adha celebration. The head of state was also received in Doha and Abu Dhabi and Salam is currently in the UAE, participating in the Arab Media Summit.
Aoun has visited Saudi Arabia, where he was received with full honors by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Meanwhile, Salam has also traveled to the kingdom, notably during the Eid al-Adha holiday.
Aoun was also welcomed in Doha and Abu Dhabi, and Salam visited Dubai on Tuesday to attend the Arab Media Summit.
Ortagus to visit Lebanon 'likely within two weeks'
Regarding the anticipated visit of U.S. envoy Morgan Ortagus to Lebanon, Rajji said that there is "no fixed date yet, but likely within two weeks.” He dismissed the idea of American frustration with Lebanon’s decision-making delays, saying: “They just keep telling us: You have a window. Use it.”
During her visits to Lebanon, Ortagus repeated U.S. wishes for Lebanon to adopt reforms, achieve a monopoly on arms, and then engage in negotiations aiming to "establish peace," according to Trump's objective. Lebanese authorities regularly highlight their readiness to respect the 1949 Armistice Agreement.
On the topic of disarming Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon, Rajji said that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’s stance “was excellent and consistent.”
Abbas visited Lebanon on an official diplomatic visit last week and his visit focused on the issue of disarming Palestinian camps, as Lebanon seeks to extend its authority over the entire territory.
Following a meeting between the two heads of state, Aoun and Abbas announced in a joint statement that "the era of weapons escaping the authority of the Lebanese state is over," but did not provide details on how exactly the state would go about achieving this.