Interior Minister in the caretaker government Bassam Mouloui emphasized that "security coordination with abroad is ongoing and permanent. We are doing everything required with Arab and international security agencies, especially Kuwaiti and Gulf ones, regarding the fight against crime and drug smuggling, for the benefit of Lebanon and its good image, and for the protection of the security of our Gulf brothers and their communities, as we are one Arab community."
Mouloui stated in an interview with the Kuwaiti newspaper "As-Siyasa": "What affects Gulf communities affects the Lebanese and affects me personally. Therefore, we take all necessary steps within the law to protect the security of Gulf communities." He reiterated that he "has not and will not allow Lebanon to be a corridor for smuggling or remain a platform for exporting harm and evil, whether verbal or actual, or anything that undermines the security of Arab and Gulf countries. Therefore, we have taken all necessary steps to protect the security of Gulf communities. If Arab and Gulf brothers are people of goodness, we are people of loyalty. If Lebanese people are people of loyalty, we must be keen on the logic of state-building, which enables us to confront all forms of exporting evil, or for Lebanon to be a conduit for any type of evil, and we have succeeded in that."
The minister stressed that "criminals have no religion or sect, and thus drug smuggling is, under international criminal law, an organized crime across nations. For us, the security and judicial file concerning drug smuggling is a priority within the framework of combating crime and holding criminals accountable. We are monitoring all details of drug smuggling operations that have been thwarted by security agencies, and we know who is behind them. We must confront these individuals and anyone who dares to target sisterly countries."
He noted, "We confront in our work the announced red lines, and we must not feel that there are unannounced red lines. We are responsible for combating crime, implementing what we believe in to build the state," adding, "We set the goal and work to achieve it." He expressed satisfaction with the results of the parliamentary elections held last May, stating, "What has been achieved was the result of strenuous efforts and the faith and love of every individual in the ministry, as we were mobilized for months to ensure the elections. The effort was focused on ensuring security to reassure people to participate in the elections in an atmosphere of transparency and integrity."
Mouloui pointed out that "Lebanese people were confident that the parliamentary elections would take place on schedule. Despite the very difficult economic conditions, we worked on a significant security achievement, stabilizing the country, conducting the elections with full transparency and internal and external confidence, under a very low budget, allowed by the appropriations, even less than in 2018, without encountering security issues."
He emphasized that "the results of the parliamentary elections reflected the spirit of change that the Lebanese demand. Despite all calls for a boycott from some parties, especially from the Sunni community, I did not find that the boycott was useful, as it would not lead to disrupting the elections. On the contrary, the national, religious, and ethical duty is to participate in this entitlement so that we can raise our voices and contribute to building the Lebanon of tomorrow, especially since voting, as I said, is a testimony for truth and the future."
Mouloui stated, "We held elections that depicted the true will of citizens in ballot boxes. I have remained neutral while ensuring the suitable atmosphere for citizens and transferring their votes with full integrity." He assured that "the security situation regarding the Ministry of Interior has always been cohesive. We faced a significant challenge in combating drug smuggling, and we managed to achieve remarkable security stability, despite extremely difficult living and life conditions, thanks to the diligent efforts of security forces, and their sense of responsibility towards their leaders, country, and people," adding, "I am doing my utmost to secure the best economic and healthcare conditions for the military."
Regarding the government file, Minister Mouloui affirmed that "if political intersections converge, they contribute to expediting the formation of a government that the country and the people need," expressing hope that "there will be a designated Prime Minister to form a government as soon as possible, as matters should not be prolonged, given the state of the country," and emphasized that "the issue of formation should not be difficult, because the goal should be fixed, and not variable." He added: "Efforts should focus on the process of extracting the country from the current crisis and building the state, as this would facilitate many matters, strengthen institutions, and comfort the people while seeking solutions to Lebanon’s economic and financial situations."
He stressed the "need to find solutions that resemble Lebanon, as hybrid and foreign solutions are not successful and do not serve the interest of the Lebanese, while not ignoring the importance of the role of Gulf countries in helping Lebanon to rescue it from its financial and economic crises. We cannot follow the right path if we neglect this issue, as Arab and Gulf countries have helped Lebanon and contributed to its survival and supporting its economy, making their continued presence alongside Lebanon very necessary."
He confirmed that "the constitution mandates electing a president at the scheduled time, thus the election process must occur on time to preserve the functioning of institutions." He emphasized that "his presidential candidate is a Lebanese who is committed to state-building first and foremost. We need to build a state in Lebanon, which has lost many of its components, its resilience, and the internal and external trust in its institutions."
He noted that "unfortunately, we no longer have the luxury of time, and we should not continue the policy of postponing solutions. To what extent can the Lebanese drown more in details, engage in political squabbling, or indulge in partisan or sectarian narrow-mindedness, or anything that detracts from state-building? Therefore, we need to have a strong, unified state, and the president must be a strong leader who believes in the state."
