Lebanon - Syria diplomatic relations

[dayag]

BEIRUT: Prime Minister Fouad Siniora said on Thursday that relations between Lebanon and Syria should be based on mutual respect for the sovereignty of both countries, especially in the wake of the decision to establish diplomatic relations. President Michel Sleiman had said Wednesday that Beirut and Damascus would exchange ambassadors by the end of 2008.

Speaking during an iftar banquet at the Grand Serail, Siniora said that the Lebanese government was making every effort to find solutions for the issues of Lebanese detainees in Syrian prisons, border demarcation between the two countries, and the status of the Israeli-occupied Shebaa Farms.

source: http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article....ticle_id=96142

[Steven]

Syria has no respect for Lebanon.

[dayag]

Syria has no respect for Lebanon.

Recent Syrian army manoeuvres on the Lebanese border would seem to lend support to your statement.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1027020.html

Still, diplomatic relations between the two countries would be a step in the right direction, not that this means that Syria is suddenly no longer a supporter of terrorists and a force for evil in the world.

[Steven]

Recent Syrian army manoeuvres on the Lebanese border would seem to lend support to your statement.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1027020.html

Still, diplomatic relations between the two countries would be a step in the right direction, not that this means that Syria is suddenly no longer a supporter of terrorists and a force for evil in the world.

The right direction is not coming. Hezbollah will not stop until they completely take over Lebanon. Just like Hamas will not stop until they have all of Palestine.

[dayag]

The right direction is not coming. Hezbollah will not stop until they completely take over Lebanon. Just like Hamas will not stop until they have all of Palestine.

I don't disagree with you about Hamas' goal, but this thread is about diplomatic relations between Lebanon and Syria, so Hamas is really irrelevent to this discussion.

The cowardly Syrians used Hezbollah as a surrogate for attacks on Israel that they were afraid to do themselves. Hezbollah used Syria as a source of arms. There is no great love between them. The only reason they worked together was that they both hated Israel.

Should Hezbollah be successful in taking over Lebanon, do you really think this Shiite terrorist group would willingly consent to come under the rule of the Baath party of Syria? So, the problem of Lebanese-Syrian relations will remain until the Syrians resign themselves to Lebanese independence.

[Steven]

I don't disagree with you about Hamas' goal, but this thread is about diplomatic relations between Lebanon and Syria, so Hamas is really irrelevent to this discussion.

The cowardly Syrians used Hezbollah as a surrogate for attacks on Israel that they were afraid to do themselves. Hezbollah used Syria as a source of arms. There is no great love between them. The only reason they worked together was that they both hated Israel.

Should Hezbollah be successful in taking over Lebanon, do you really think this Shiite terrorist group would willingly consent to come under the rule of the Baath party of Syria? So, the problem of Lebanese-Syrian relations will remain until the Syrians resign themselves to Lebanese independence.

They will not stop until they take Lebanon and then they will turn on each other. In the end Hezbollah will control both countries.

Hezbollah gets stronger by the day as the world sits and does nothing about them. Which I find amazing.

[dayag]

They will not stop until they take Lebanon and then they will turn on each other. In the end Hezbollah will control both countries.

Hezbollah gets stronger by the day as the world sits and does nothing about them. Which I find amazing.

A Shiite/Hezbollah controlled Lebanon is not powerful enough to conquer the much more powerful Syria with its predominantly Sunni population. They would be much more likely to focus their efforts on destroying Israel should they be successful on gaining complete control of Lebanon.

[bararallu]

A Shiite/Hezbollah controlled Lebanon is not powerful enough to conquer the much more powerful Syria with its predominantly Sunni population. They would be much more likely to focus their efforts on destroying Israel should they be successful on gaining complete control of Lebanon.

I think they have much less of a chance against Israel than Syria really. If push comes to massive shove, southern lebanon, hell all of lebanon, will be made of dirty glass.

Now internally in Syria, given recent developments, the Syrians are playing their traditional brinkmanship, bringing up "allies" enough so they can strew them over. They did it to everyone, the Christians, the Druse, The Palistos, the Shia too. They are the linchpin for Iranian power projection, if that linchpin is removed, there is better than a small chance that the Sunni, if radical enough, will slaughter all the Shia in Syria and Lebanon, to the last child... since this is how they roll.

The Alawi pencil necks are always doing their little machinations, but one day they will get called on it, even by their so called allies.

[dayag]

As someone who never wants to see Lebanon under Syrian occupation again, this is a step forward. Syria has recognized Lebanon's existence as an independent state:

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has issued a decree for the opening of full diplomatic ties with Lebanon for the first time since independence 60 years ago, the official SANA news agency said on Tuesday.

The decree calls for "the establishment of diplomatic relations between the Syrian Arab Republic and the Lebanese republic and the creation of a diplomatic mission at ambassador level in the Lebanese capital Beirut," it said.

The two states announced on August 13 their intention to open diplomatic ties for the first time since independence from France six decades ago, following a pledge made by Assad and Lebanese President Michel Sleiman in Paris in July.

In Beirut, a foreign ministry official said that Foreign Minister Fawzi Salloukh would head to Damascus on Wednesday to discuss details of the launch of ties.

"We expect to issue a statement setting the date and time as well as other details," the official told AFP.

Assad said last month he expected full diplomatic relations between Damascus and Beirut by the end of this year.

The next ambassador to Beirut will face "complicated files such as the cases of missing Syrians and Lebanese, border demarcation, and revision of certain accords" between the two states, the official daily Al-Watan said on Tuesday.

Damascus and Beirut have since 1991, a year after the end of Lebanon's 15-year civil war, been tied by a treaty of friendship and cooperation on political, economic and security issues.

The anti-Syrian camp which forms the majority in Lebanon's parliament has long been critical of the treaty as sacrificing the interests of Beirut to the benefit of Damascus.

On Monday, US President George W. Bush had warned Syria that it must respect Lebanon's sovereignty and urged Damascus to open full diplomatic ties with Beirut.

His comments came as Washington closely watched Syrian troop movements near the border with Lebanon, which have raised concerns among anti-Damascus figures in Lebanon.

Members of the anti-Syrian majority in Beirut say Syria could be setting the stage to return its forces to their country.

But Lebanon's president Sleiman issued a statement on Saturday, after contacts with Assad, accepting that the troop movements were aimed at tackling smuggling as stated by Damascus.

And French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner has said the troops "are not threatening anyone".

In September, the Lebanese army revealed the deployment of 10,000 Syrian special forces in the Abbudiya region along the border between Lebanon and Syria.

The move came a month after a Damascus summit between Assad and Sleiman.

After three decades of domination, Syria withdrew its troops from Lebanon in 2005 under pressure following the assassination in Beirut of former Lebanese premier Rafiq Hariri.

Damascus has consistently denied charges of involvement in the murder.

source: http://rawstory.com/news/afp/Syria_i..._10142008.html

[Steven]

I believe that is just empty talk and a stall tactic. Stalling until Iran and Hezbollah get nukes.

[dayag]

It may all be for propaganda purposes, but it is a done deal:

The foreign ministers of Syria and Lebanon have signed an agreement formalizing diplomatic ties between the two countries.

The signing comes a day after Syrian President Bashar Assad issued a decree establishing diplomatic relations for the first time with its smaller neighbor. The US and Lebanese politicians opposed to Syria's influence in the country have long demanded Syria recognize Lebanon's sovereignty.

The two countries have not had formal diplomatic relations since both gained independence from France in the 1940s.

The document announcing the start of diplomatic relations was signed in Damascus on Wednesday by Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Moallem and his Lebanese counterpart Fawzi Salloukh....

source: http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7...609009,00.html

[orangeblossom]

First, Daily Star is pro-syria

I can't believe you take their articles serious. They have one pro-LF guy on staff just to look open-minded.

As for Syria...most Lebanese - on a daily basis - tell Assad to kiss their arse. Think you guys miss what is happening on the streets and you read to much Nasrallah propaganda.

But, that's ok..you are still new to Lebanese.

LUV YA!

OB

[orangeblossom]

Oh, and by the way...ONCE WE GET A SYRIAN EMBASSEY THERE.....IN BEIRUT...THEN SYRIA ACKNOWLEDGES US AS INDEPENDANT FROM THEM!

We are not Syria, we are Lebanese. We we get a Syrian Ambassador, then we are officially Lebanese...Syria does not want to do that at ALLLLLL COSTS.

We are going by the books to force them.....not kissing their arses on it. We do not want war anymore, we want to go to nightclubs and casinos. Nasrallah can sit in his hole hating it.

And if the WORLD acknowledges us (like Bush, jr did), then we got it.

OB

[Tonto]

Orangeblossom, just for conversation sake, what percentage of hezbulla that call themselves Lebonese are of palestinian extraction? I ask since most of the palestinians kicked out of Jordan in 1973 went to Lebanon and caused huge problems that led almost to the dissolution of Lebanon.

[bararallu]

Orangeblossom, just for conversation sake, what percentage of hezbulla that call themselves Lebonese are of palestinian extraction? I ask since most of the palestinians kicked out of Jordan in 1973 went to Lebanon and caused huge problems that led almost to the dissolution of Lebanon.

That would depend partially on what you consider Palistine, not to say that the Lebanese (esp Maronites and Druse) should be saddled with additional landless fellahin that were nationally fabricated by Egypt, Syria and the Soviet Union.