Moqbel Tours Iran's Military Factories as Tehran Says Grant 'Ready'
Iranian Defense Minister Hossein Dehqan on Monday said Tehran has a “duty” to supply Lebanon with weapons, noting that Iran's proposed military grant has become “ready” to be sent to Lebanon once it receives the approval of the government in Beirut.
“Iran has the will to confront the takfiri, Zionist and seditious movements in the region,” Dehqan said during a second round of talks with his Lebanese counterpart Samir Moqbel, who began a three-day visit to Iran on Saturday.
The minister expressed his country's readiness to continue providing Lebanon with arms “to confront the ISIL (Islamic State) and the terrorist groups.”
"What we are supplying to the Lebanese army is a rapid reaction in response to a possible threat," Iran's Fars news agency quoted Dehqan as saying.
The Iranian official pointed out that “Lebanon enjoys a special status in the Iranian foreign policy.”
“Supplying Lebanon with arms and boosting its military assets in the face of the takfiri-Zionist movements and the ISIL is a duty for us,” Dehqan went on to say.
Moqbel for his part said his tours in Iran allowed him to examine “only 10 percent of Iran's defense capabilities.”
He noted that the Iranian minister “agreed to provide a large number of the Lebanese army's demands” while acknowledging that “this grant is an unconditional grant.”
Moqbel also stressed that the proposed Iranian donation needs to gain the approval of the Lebanese council of ministers before the “necessary measures” can be taken.
Iran had vowed to supply the Lebanese army with much-needed equipment following its deadly clashes with fighters from the Islamic State group and al-Qaida affiliate, al-Nusra Front, on the Syrian border in August.
Iran's offer of military support -- made when Iran's Supreme National Security Council chief visited Beirut last month -- followed aid packages for the Lebanese army from Tehran's regional rival Riyadh as well as from Washington.
Moqbel is not entitled to sign any agreement or make any commitment to the Iranian military grant, As Safir daily reported on Friday.
His role is limited to informing the Lebanese government about the pledges made by the Iranian officials to take the appropriate action, said the newspaper.
Some Lebanese factions, mainly al-Mustaqbal movement and the March 14 alliance, have refused the grant. Centrist Progressive Socialist Party chief MP Walid Jumblat has also expressed reservations on it.
Y.R.
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