Lebanese parliament Speaker Nabih Berri confirmed to Asharq Al-Awsat that a committee has been formed to request the renewal of the mandate of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL).
Ministerial sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that the renewal was the focus of talks between President Joseph Aoun and Berri.
The speaker said the committee will be tasked with preparing the request that will be submitted to the UN Security Council.
The renewal will be requested without an amendment to UNIFIL’s duties, he revealed.
Berri said Aoun informed him that Lebanon is not aware of any efforts to amend the mission’s duties or that there were attempts to reduce the number of its troops.
At the moment, Lebanon is awaiting a visit by the United States’ Deputy Middle East envoy Morgan Oratgus to determine what Washington’s position is towards the renewal and UNIFIL’s future.
Washington has said it wants to reduce its financial contributions to the UN budget, which will impact its role in supporting the Lebanese army’s efforts in implementing UN Security Council resolution 1701.
The US is reportedly also seeking to amend UNIFIL’s duties and possibly even meeting Tel Aviv’s demand that the international force be removed entirely from southern Lebanon.
Berri said Lebanon wants to keep UNIFIL and its mandate. It will also reiterate to Ortagus its demand that Israel withdraw its forces from Lebanon so that resolution 1701 can be implemented in full.
He noted that France already supports the renewal of UNIFIL’s mandate, while the US has not made any announcement related to the issue.
Moreover, he stressed that Lebanon has met all of its commitments towards the US-sponsored ceasefire with Israel.
Berri added that his ally Hezbollah is committed to the ceasefire and cooperating with the military in deploying south of the Litani River with UNIFIL’s support.
Hezbollah continues to respect the ceasefire as demonstrated in its refraining from retaliating to Israeli violations and attacks. It has not fired a single shot since the ceasefire was declared in November. Israel, meanwhile, continues to violate the agreement, added Berri.
