Whom Do We Hold a Dialogue With if Not Rivals?
British Ambassador to Lebanon Francis Mary Guy, praised the efforts of U.S. President Barack Obama "who is attempting to open a new page in U.S.-Iranian relations". She stressed on the importance of dialogue saying: "Dialogue requires us to understand the needs of others to arrive at a basis for settlement to build peace and stability, if we don”t hold a dialogue with those whom we consider rivals then whom do we dialogue with?"
The ambassador was hosted by the United Nations al-Waleed program at the Lebanese American University, to emphasize the efforts for strengthening the culture of peace and the importance of diplomatic work.
The ambassador drew from the past example of her country”s experience with the Irish Republican Army in the 1970″s saying that it was not possible to achieve a breakthrough and succeed in this issue without holding shuttle rounds of diligent dialogue.
"Patience and willingness are the two basic foundations for a successful diplomatic achievement," Guy said.
She added that if the diplomacy of a powerful military could not be achieved, taking the long and constructive road of dialogue would be the better choice.
"What is important is that we must never say no to dialogue," Guy said.
Guy also paid tribute to President Michel Suleiman”s efforts in following the course of dialogue to dispel the political aggressiveness that was in Lebanon.