Opposition”s Demand for Partnership Contravenes Poll Results
French diplomatic sources told An Nahar daily that the opposition”s demands and conditions for cabinet formation contravene the results of the June 7 parliamentary elections that the March 8 alliance accepted.
The newspaper on Thursday also quoted the sources as saying that the opposition did not object to and at the same time did not accept the results of the elections. But the partnership that the March 8 forces are calling for, disregards the results of the polls.
They said regional powers that back the opposition continue to impose on Premier-designate Saad Hariri conditions that obstruct the quick formation of a national unity cabinet.
The sources told An Nahar that Syria should change its stances and make efforts to help achieve solutions to the three major problems in the Middle East: Iraq, Israeli-Palestinian peace and the Lebanese issue.
On Lebanon, Damascus should not meddle in Lebanese affairs negatively. According to the sources, it should urge all parties to cooperate and engage in dialogue in order to reach national reconciliation and pave way for a second Doha accord to form a government.
Meanwhile, pan-Arab daily Asharq al-Awsat quoted a Syrian official as telling a French side that the Lebanese are demanding non-interference, but at the same time "they ask us to put pressure on this or that, which means they allow us to meddle."
Well-informed French sources said that Syria is avoiding direct interference in Lebanese cabinet formation and is not backing the veto power that the opposition is calling for.
The sources added that Damascus has engaged in dialogue with Riyadh to achieve a stable political situation in Lebanon. However, despite such Syrian stances, "points of contention" between Beirut and Syria, such as border demarcation and arms smuggling, remain.