Comprehensive Peace Must Include the Lebanese-Israeli Track
Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said Lebanon”s joining of peace negotiations with Lebanon needs to be paved through adding that a comprehensive and permanent peace in the Middle East must also include the Lebanese-Israel track as with the Palestinian and Syrian tracks with Israel, following preparations.
The Turkish FM added that his country is working on reviving the Syrian-Israeli peace track under American auspices despite complications by the Israeli side.
He informed Lebanese officials that Turkey shall continue to contribute to the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), saying Ankara is also willing to present military aid to the Lebanese armed forces.
Davutoglu disclosed that his visit to Beirut is his first official visit as foreign minister, saying he previously visited Lebanon 13 times in a "confidential" capacity and similarly paid 34 such visits to Damascus. Some of these visits were directly related to Lebanese issues.
The daily As-Safir on Saturday that following their meeting with Dautoglu, Lebanese official came out with the impression that Ankara had diligently worked on bridging the Syrian-Saudi gap to benefit Lebanon.
Davutoglu met with President Suleiman, care-taker Prime Minister Saniora and Prime Minster-designate Saad Hariri and paid a visit to the Turkish UNIFIL unit in south Lebanon.