The President of the Free Patriotic Current Gébran Bassil received this Monday the Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs Peter Ciarto at the party’s headquarters, rue Mirna Chalouhi, underlining the personal friendship between the 2 men.
Gebran Bassil thus praised the action of Hungary which “supports the cause of the Christian presence in Lebanon and in the East, and in all meetings”, recalling for example, the project of restoration of the old churches in Lebanon, which began since 2018 and continues until today. 33 churches have already been restored during the second phase and 30 additional churches will be restored during the third phase.
Addressing the issue of economic sanctions that could affect some Lebanese politicians, Gébran Bassil notes that it would be detrimental to Europe and Lebanon, “bringing it further east”. Lebanon wishes to remain balanced, notes the leader of the CPL.
Gébran Bassil also called on the European Union to help Lebanon by taking “measures against the people or entities in Lebanon who have abused public money and led the country to bankruptcy and collapse”, calling for the seizure of funds transferred within the EU before and after October 17, 2019.
For his part, Peter Szijjarto called for stabilizing Lebanon with “a stable and strong government capable of carrying out its tasks well”, constituted without foreign interference. During the meeting of the ministers of the EA, the question of economic sanctions was indeed addressed, confirms the minister, considering however that “it is not correct that the European Union imposes sanctions on the people democratically and legally elected by the Lebanese people “.
The Hungarian minister thus pleaded in favor of several points to help Lebanon:
- the fight against the Coronavirus epidemic: “we brought with us 20 respirators and 20,000 medical masks to help Lebanon fight against the global epidemic”.
- Restoration of Heritage: “Last year, we invested in the religious, educational and health fields worth $ 4 million. After the explosion of the port. Beirut, We have donated over one million euros to the Maronite Patriarchate to help those affected. We have restored 33 churches with one million five hundred thousand dollars in Lebanon. We are ready to launch the new phase of restoration of 30 other churches with two million dollars.
- The education sector: “we give 50 scholarships to Lebanese students to learn in Hungarian universities
- Participation in UNIFIL
- Support for Lebanon in the face of illegal immigration, recalling the presence of a million and a half refugees in Lebanon: “n as Hungarians, we must work to put an end to the causes that lead to immigration and not to stimulate waves “. He therefore called for the return of Syrian refugees, supporting the Lebanese proposals on this subject.
As a result, “Lebanon should neither teach lessons nor threaten Christians with sanctions from Europe, what Lebanon needs is real support, and we are ready to provide it and we will preserve it “
“Warned us against the crisis of Syrians displaced to and from Lebanon,” said Gébran Bassil, also thanking Hungary for having alerted the European Union to this crisis.
The formation of the government is an internal matter in Lebanon “which must be agreed upon by the Lebanese parties themselves without any foreign interference”
Acting Foreign Minister Charbel Wehbe had previously met with his Hungarian counterpart, Peter Szijjarto, describing the meeting as honest and friendly. On the menu of discussions, the current situation in Lebanon and in particular the economic crisis currently going through the land of cedars.
Peter Szijjarto thus considered that the question of the formation of the government is an internal matter in Lebanon “which must be agreed by the Lebanese parties themselves without any foreign interference”.
He also considered that “the external pressure, which is exerted against the biggest Christian party of Lebanon, is not a good thing” considering that Lebanon needs more help than sanctions and foreign interference.
“We commend Lebanon for hosting millions of refugees, providing them with all necessary supplies, but we also believe that refugees should return to their homeland in the absence of the reasons that led to their migration in the first place,” Szijjarto concluded after this meeting.
