Lebanon First Beneficiary From Kuwait”s Reconciliation
Prime Minister Fouad Saniora said Monday the initiative of Saudi King Abdullah has paved the way for Arabs to handle their basic issues and protect their rights.
Saniora, who is attending the first Arab Economic Summit in Kuwait, said: "We in Lebanon are the first to benefit from this (Saudi) initiative. Our strength and unity is multiplied by theirs (the Arabs), and we are the first to encourage and welcome this reconciliation and initiative."
"President Michel Suleiman and I worked on joining and supporting (Arab) lines," Saniora said.
He went on to add that the Saudi King has opened the door wide for all Arabs to unite in the face of Arab causes.
"What happened is not the end of problems that we as Arabs face, rather it is the right path for confronting our issues," he said. "We have to seriously think of how best to invest this initiative to our interest on all internal Lebanese, inter-Arab and international levels" particularly when U.S. President-elect Barak Obama is moving into the White House.
Saniora said that the Saudi monarch was a pioneer in proposing his (peace), initiative at the 2002 Arab summit in Beirut, adding: "He was a pioneer once again in stretching his hand to his brethren to overcome the past."
The prime minister paid tribute to King Abdullah”s $1 billion donation for rebuilding Gaza, reminding reporters of the monarch”s similar donation to Lebanon following the July 2006 war.