Berri: Presidential Elections 'Ripe', Saudi Arabia will not Abandon Us
Speaker Nabih Berri said on Friday that the stalled presidential elections are ready to be held at the current stage and assured that Saudi Arabia will not abandon Lebanon, An Nahar daily reported.
“The presidential fruit is mature and ripe for picking after all the delay,” he told the daily.
He expressed fear that the Lebanese would miss this opportunity, he said: “I fear that the fruit would fall before the Lebanese are able to seize the opportunity and taste its antidote that they have long waited for,” added the Speaker.
Lebanon's presidential elections have been stalled since the term of President Michel Suleiman ended in May 2014.
Conflicts between the rival March 8 and March 14 camps thwarted all attempts to elect a successor.
On the deteriorating Saudi-Lebanese relations, Berri assured that he will save no opportunity in order to keep the best relationship between the two countries.
Berri said: “I am sure that Saudi Arabia will not abandon Lebanon.”
Relations between Lebanon and the Kingdom saw a lapse in February when Riyadh halted a grant to the army in protest against Hizbullah's virulent criticism of the kingdom and Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil's abstention from voting in favor of Arab League resolutions condemning attacks against the Saudi embassy in Iran in January.
The kingdom upped the measures even more and urged its citizens against traveling to Lebanon.
Gulf countries also issued similar advisories.
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Source: Naharnet
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