Caretaker Social Affairs Minister Wael Abou Faour revealed on Tuesday that a meeting will be held with President Michel Suleiman and caretaker Prime Minister Najib Miqati at 7:00 p.m. at the Baabda Palace.

Abou Faour said in comments published in An Nahar newspaper that the meeting will tackle the establishment of a trust fund to manage the financial assistance received from donor countries and international organizations to confront the mounting Syrian refugees crisis.

Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun said Saturday that the “strategic understanding” with the resistance hasn't changed despite disagreements on local issues, adding the FPM and Hizbullah would have similar stances on their participation in the new government.

“The strategic understanding with the resistance will not change but there are some local issues that there should be leniency in dealing with,” Aoun told Hizbullah's al-Nour radio in an interview.

Meetings expected to be held by the country's top leaders on the sidelines of an Iftar banquet at Baabda palace next Tuesday are expected to facilitate the cabinet formation process, ministerial sources said.

Sources said on Saturday that President Michel Suleiman, Speaker Nabih Berri, Caretaker Premier Najib Miqati and Premier-designate Tammam Salam are expected to meet on the sidelines of the Iftar.

President Michel Suleiman stressed on Friday that the current stage the country is passing through and the political and security developments compel everyone to have the necessary awareness and prioritize the national interest.

“The accelerated frequency of political and security developments locally and regionally impose on everyone to have the required awareness and prioritize the national interest,” Suleiman said.

Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Miqati stressed that his resigned cabinet will not convene to appoint a new Army commander, pointing out that the parliament has to hold a session to extend the tenure of the current army chief Gen. Jean Qahwaji.

“We are not in a condition that allows us to agree on a new army commander,” Miqati said in comments published in al-Akhbar newspaper on Thursday.

President Michel Suleiman, Speaker Nabih Berri, caretaker Prime Minister Najib Miqati and Premier-designate Tammam Salam condemned on Tuesday the blast that rocked the Bir al-Abed neighborhood in Beirut's southern suburbs, urging the Lebanese people to end their disputes.

Suleiman said in a statement: “The explosion should prompt officials to end their differences, return to dialogue, and commit to the Baabda Declaration.”

President Michel Suleiman hit back on Monday at requests made by March 14 alliance officials to hold the army accountable over the clashes in the southern city of Sidon, saying such demands should not be turned into a political campaign that targets its patriotic role.

In a statement released by Baabda palace, Suleiman lauded the military's patriotic role in preventing strife and confronting security tension to preserve civil peace and stability.

Prime Minister-designate Tammam Salam said Monday that there was still no progress in the formation of a new government and that a decision to step down was one of the available options.

“There is still no progress in the cabinet formation but this will not stop me” from exerting further efforts, Salam said following talks with President Michel Suleiman at Baabda palace.

Speaker Nabih Berri is holding onto his right to call for a parliamentary session and to the agenda that was set by the parliament's bureau, saying there is no “compromise when its related to the constitution.”

“The AMAL movement already objects 15 articles included on the agenda of the session,” Berri said in comments published in As Safir newspaper on Monday.

Speaker Nabih Berri has rejected throwing the ball in his court over the crisis on the constitutionality of a parliamentary session, saying he had reached an agreement with caretaker Premier Najib Miqati to resolve the problem.

In remarks to An Nahar newspaper published Sunday, Berri said it was wrong to throw the ball in his court after reports emerged that President Michel Suleiman and Miqati had reached a deal and were waiting for his approval.