Ex-PM Saad Hariri announced Thursday that his nomination for the PM post would not be a “favor from anyone,” noting that he has a major parliamentary bloc and known representation.
“There are three projects in the country — that of Hizbullah and the Amal Movement which is linked to foreign forces, another that wants to pull Lebanon out of this crisis and works according to the ‘Lebanon first’ principle, and a third for overbidders who have brought the country to its current state,” Hariri said in a live interview on Lebanon’s MTV.
Noting that the the rotation of ministerial portfolios was Speaker Nabih Berri’s idea during the formation of Tammam Salam’s government, Hariri said the stances of Hizbullah and Amal were “escalated after the U.S. sanctions after the initial positivity towards the French initiative.”
“Does the finance portfolio deserve torpedoing the rescue initiative for halting the collapse and reconstructing Beirut? We agreed at the Pine Residence that the political parties would keep away from the government and that specialists would be named ministers for the rescue mission,” he added.
“The French initiative has not fallen and (French President Emmanuel) Macron spoke of a mistake that happened but he then said that Saad Hariri had made a brave initiative,” Hariri went on to say.
He also noted that Free Patriotic Movement chief Jebran Bassil, Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea and Progressive Socialist Party head Walid Jumblat had rejected that he be nominated to form the new government, each for his own “agenda.”
Hariri also revealed that his latest phone call with Jumblat had been “stormy,” disclosing that the PSP leader asked him during the conversation to “accept granting the finance portfolio to the Shiite sect for good.”
Separately, the ex-PM said that the issue of border demarcation with Israel “moved forward due to the sanctions that were imposed on some parties.”
- 9 hours ago
Hariri: The latest phone call with Walid Jumblat was stormy and he wanted me to accept granting the finance portfolio to the Shiite sect for good.
- 9 hours ago
Hariri: I’m a nominee for the PM post without that being a favor from anyone and the issue of border demarcation moved forward due to the recent sanctions.
- 10 hours ago
Hariri: The rotation of portfolios was Speaker Berri’s idea when Tammam Salam’s government was formed.
- 10 hours ago
Hariri: The stances were escalated after the U.S. sanctions after the initial positivity towards the French initiative.
- 10 hours ago
Hariri: Does the finance portfolio deserve torpedoing the rescue initiative for halting the collapse and reconstructing Beirut? We agreed at the Pine Residence that the political parties would keep away from the government and that specialists would be named ministers for the rescue mission.
- 10 hours ago
Hariri: Hizbullah and the Amal Movement insist on nominating Saad Hariri only to avoid Sunni-Shiite tensions.
- 10 hours ago
Hariri: The French initiative is still alive.
- 10 hours ago
Hariri: When Macron came to Lebanon, I agreed with him on the formation of a mission government for six months, whose mission would have been to stop the collapse and rebuild Beirut, but political forces rejected to nominate me.
- 10 hours ago
Hariri: The French initiative has not fallen and Macron spoke of a mistake that happened but he then said that Saad Hariri had made a brave initiative.
- 10 hours ago
Hariri: There are three projects in the country — that of Hizbullah and the Amal Movement which is linked to foreign forces, another that wants to pull Lebanon out of this crisis and works according to the ‘Lebanon first’ principle, and a third for overbidders who have brought the country to its current state.
- 10 hours ago
Hariri: Arms have imposed some unacceptable equations on the Lebanese.
- 10 hours ago
Hariri: Any constitution in the world cannot succeed in the presence of parties that impose things through force.