Sarkozy to Ask Syria Over Delay in Exchanging Ambassadors
French President Nicolas Sarkozy is expected to question Syrian officials over the reasons for delaying the exchange of ambassadors between Damascus and Beirut during his upcoming visit to Syria and the region on Monday.
French sources told the daily pan-Arab al-Hayat on Saturday that Sarkozy wants to know the reasons from Damascus for delaying the exchange of ambassadors with Lebanon, particularly when the Lebanese government has already nominated its first ambassador to Syria (rumored to be Michel el-Khoury).
Beirut still awaits Syria”s official response to that nomination.
Sources did not rule out that the French president would seek to know from his Syrian counterpart Bashar al-Assad, what progress has been made regarding his relations with Lebanon since their last meeting in July.
Other sources told al-Hayat that Assad could time Sarkozy”s visit to Damascus as a pretext for nominating Syria”s ambassador to Beirut.
Diplomatic sources told the daily An-Nahar that by receiving MP Saad Hariri at the Elysee Palace on Friday, Paris wanted to send a message that it continues to maintain and safeguard its alliances in the region.
A French source told the daily As-Safir that Sarkozy intends to ask Assad to work on convincing the Hamas leadership to accept a preliminary halt to launching rockets prior to the discussion of an international resolution that would put an end to the ongoing Israeli military operation in Gaza.
President Sarkozy is expected to arrive to Beirut on Tuesday afternoon coming from Damascus, ending his regional tour.
He is expected to remain for a few hours in Lebanon during which he would meet with President Michel Suleiman, and pay tribute to the French contingent working under the United Nations International Forces in Lebanon (UNIFIL).