Political, economic, social, livelihood, domestic and foreign affairs are the main concerns of any country in the globe. Although a small country compared to the developing ones, Lebanon also seems to blunder in a bunch of dilemmas that cover almost all aforementioned aspects.

The major Lebanese newspapers tackled Lebanon's top problems in its Friday edition, highlighting potential resolutions.

Gov't to Rule "Account Cut-off" on Former Spending

A "quadruplet" meeting was held in the Grand Serail, led by PM Najib Mikati, in presence of Ministers Mohammad Fneish, Ali Hassan Khalil, and Gibran Bassil, who were later joined by MP Ibrahim Kanaan.

As-Safir daily reported that the meeting underlined the former governments' spending, between the years 2006 and 2010. Among the points agreed upon were "not to discharge the former governments, namely [Fouad] Siniora's government from its debts, identified to be $11 billion, and which should be justified, especially because it was not based on any lawful or constitutional basis".

Moreover, the convening sides iterated that the Finance Ministry should present and discuss the data available in its possession in order to investigate the said spending, with further hopes to put an end to the "unlimited spending" of governments.

The daily stated that the meeting wrapped up a consensus that Friday's ministerial meeting would agree on an "financial audit" of former spending.

In an interview with al-Akhbar daily, MP Kanaan affirmed that since 2005, this is the first time that the parliaments and the judiciary are allowed to monitor the government accounts, affirming that the aforementioned consensus "is an agreement to respect the constitution and laws".

Safadi: Lebanon Adherent to Maritime Rights

In an attempt to highlight Lebanon's stance, Lebanese Finance Minister Mohammad Safadi described the relation between Lebanon and Cyprus as "a neighboring relation based on exchanged respect, joint interests, and firm will to enhance international peace, especially in the east of the Mediterranean".

Safadi's remarks came on the sideline of his official visit to Cyprus, in a bid to boost political and economic ties between both countries.

During the visit, as-Safir newspaper reported that Safadi held talks with his Cypriot counterpart Kikis Kazamias, which revolved around developing mutual interests on all aspects. They also highlighted the importance of establishing a mutual committee of both countries' Finance Ministries, in order to exchange information and expertise on the level of financial and revenue laws. This comes, according to the daily, in light of the newly-issued oil law; an introductory step to start the offshore drillings.

Moreover, as-Safir daily added that Minister Safadi met with Cypriot Foreign Minister Erato Kozakou-Marcoullis, where both sides discussed the latest developments in the region, and referred to the Lebanon-Cyprus maritime borders' demarcation.
On this level, Minister Safadi asserted that "Lebanon is adherent to all its rights regarding the offshore area which "Israel" claims it owns".

Higher Defense Council Convenes, Vows Protection of Lebanon-Syria borders

The security status on the Lebanese-Syrian borders currently receives official concern after claims of "more" Syrians seeking refuge in Lebanon. Those claims escalated after US Ambassador to Lebanon Maura Connelly's threats of drastic repercussions, demanding Lebanon to protect the so-called rebel "Free Syrian Army" members.

On this level, the major Lebanese dailies underscored the national "Higher Defense Council's" meeting which convened to adopt border-security decisions, which were kept undisclosed due to security reasons.

Present at the meeting were Lebanese President Michel Suleiman, MP Najib Mikati, Finance Minister Mohammad Safadi, Defense Minister Fayez Ghoson, Foreign Minister Adnan Mansour, Economic Minister Nicolas Nahhas, Interior Minister Marwan Charbel, Justice Minister Shakib Qartabawi, and Media Minister Walid Daouk.
Also, Lebanese Army Commander Jean Qahwaji, and other high-ranked security officials were present at the meeting.

Annan to Syria Amid International Rhetoric

Before his visit to Syria on Saturday, the UN-Arab League (AL) Special Envoy to Syria, Kofi Annan called upon all the opposition spectrums of Syria to "cooperate in order to find a resolution that would meet the anticipations of the Syrian people".
After talks he held with AL Chief Nabil al-Arabi and Egyptian Foreign Minister Mohammad Kamel Amro, Annan warned that "more arming in Syria would worsen the situation".

Also, Annan affirmed that he would seek a "political" resolution, especially that "Syria's geographic and human nature would gravely affect the region, if the situation turned into an armed civil war".

Meanwhile, an-Nahar reported that Washington is still keen on interfering in Syria's affairs, where it blatantly asserted its full "support to the opposition".
In this context, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said in a press conference that her country is working with the Syrian opposition "up close" to try and help them form a united front against the Syrian regime.
In its part, Moscow stands away from any direct interference, however; diplomatically, it vows to support the Syrian regime, stressing that the situation in Syria will only be solved through dialogue.

The Lebanese daily reported that Deputy Russian Foreign Minister Ginadi Gatilov "tweeted" that his country is conducting tough negotiations in New York over the Syrian dilemma.
Furthermore, Gatilov asserted that Moscow will not approve any UN Security Council resolution on Syria, which would possibly include any signs of military strike or force against it.


Source: Lebanese Newspapers, Translated and Edited by moqawama.org