What Did Aoun Mean by Ending Hostilities With Israel?
President Joseph Aoun stressed that “we chose negotiations because we are a sovereign state, and this decision is in Lebanon’s interest, not to please anyone abroad.”
Speaking to a delegation from the Youth Movement Lebanon, headed by Wadih Hanna, he said: “Our loyalty must be to our country. Anyone who seeks foreign support against others at home is the loser, because the outside world will eventually abandon him. No war in Lebanon has ever had a winner; everyone lost, and the country lost.”
He added: “When I call for ending the state of hostility with Israel, I mean ending the wars that have destroyed the country and claimed innocent lives. We no longer have the capacity to bear them, and any other interpretation is wrong and suspect.”
Aoun stressed that “there will be no backtracking on the reforms I committed to in my inaugural address. The delay was caused by the war that targeted Lebanon, but we will continue working to implement them because they represent the vision of the new Lebanon.”
He continued: “We are fighting a battle against corruption, and combating it requires the judiciary, digital government, and the cooperation of the Lebanese people with the state.”
