Lebanese government platform for calm discussion on national defensive strategy
MP Walid Jumblatt said he looked to Wednesday’s liberation of Lebanese detainees from Israeli prisons as “an opportunity to promote the restorative atmosphere generated by the Doha Agreement and emphasize the common denominators upon which we agree.”
Jumblatt, who heads the Progressive Socialist Party (PSP) and Democratic Gathering parliamentary bloc, said the Lebanese still had many other controversial issues to resolve. “This is at the heart of the democratic system to which we will remain true, no matter what the difficulties and challenges,” he added.
In his weekly column for the PSP-run Al-Anbaa weekly, Jumblatt wrote that he hoped the formation of a Lebanese government would stabilize national partnership and facilitate the calm discussion of a national defensive strategy, as stated in the Doha Agreement, as the first step toward returning to political debate through constitutional institutions.
“There are national constants that are cornerstones, primarily the Taif Agreement, the decisions made through national dialogue, and the seven points that govern the work of the government and define its political track,” he wrote.
Jumblatt emphasized that talk of the one party’s desire and ability to dominate the cabinet were false.
He also questioned recent attention on the Syrian – Israeli talks, “as though the Palestinian cause has become less important in ranking.” He also raised the issue of the International Tribunal, which seemed to be losing attention as it had been mentioned “neither directly nor indirectly” recently.