Nasrallah Says Some Govt. Hurdles Unresolved despite 'Major Progress'
Hizbullah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah announced Friday that some of the obstacles that are delaying the formation of the new government have not been resolved despite the “major and important progress” of the past few days.
“There is major and important progress in the cabinet formation process but matters related to portfolios and names are still pending,” said Nasrallah in a televised speech during a Hizbullah ceremony.
“Everyone is awaiting answers and we're concerned with this last part,” he added.
Noting that “it is wrong to link between the developments in Lebanon and Iraq,” Nasrallah emphasized that “Iran is not interfering in the issue of the Lebanese government.”
“The cabinet formation process is in the hands of President (Michel) Aoun and PM-designate (Saad) Hariri,” Nasrallah stressed, adding that Hizbullah is not interfering in “the distribution of portfolios and shares.”
“There are claims that I sat with (Free Patriotic Movement chief Jebran) Bassil and informed him of the need to form the government through offering concessions before the U.S. sanctions on Iran enter into force. This meeting did not happen and these remarks were not voiced. We do not impose our will on the FPM, the PM-designate or any of the political forces,” Nasrallah went on to say.
“It is clear that there is great optimism and important positivities in the cabinet formation process, but we do not advise anyone to set timeframes, because some obstacles and issues might arise all of a sudden,” the Hizbullah chief added.
He underlined that there is a need to form the government seeing as “Lebanon needs it economically, socially and politically.”
“The mindset should remain in this context and should not exceed it to settling scores,” Nasrallah urged.
And noting that the “main obstacle” is the “failure to agree on unified standards for the formation process,” Nasrallah called on officials to “show modesty.”
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