Lebanon's Minister of Foreign Affairs and Emigrants, Abdullah Bouhabib, concluded his participation in the ministerial meeting of the Union for the Mediterranean by holding four bilateral meetings with the Foreign Ministers of Denmark, Luxembourg, Slovenia, and Ireland. During these meetings, Bouhabib emphasized "the importance of continuing internal dialogue in Lebanon, especially with Hezbollah, and that the decision for war and escalation is in Israel's hands, as Lebanon does not want war and is not seeking it." He called for "demanding that Israeli officials stop the threats to destroy Lebanon and the daily and recurrent military violations of Lebanon's sovereignty."
Minister Bouhabib will travel to Rome tomorrow to meet with Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Secretary of State of the Vatican. During his meeting with Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares, Bouhabib expressed gratitude for "Spain's commitment to supporting Lebanon and standing by it in all international and European arenas." He appreciated Spain's support for "UNIFIL and the role played by the commander of the peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon," welcoming a visit from "his Spanish counterpart to Lebanon at the earliest opportunity."
In his speech at the ministerial meeting of the Union for the Mediterranean in Barcelona, Abdullah Bouhabib stated, "We cannot continue negotiations without a timeframe as it will lead to further problems." He affirmed that "the international community is called upon to work on implementing the two-state solution and transforming this tragedy into an opportunity." Bouhabib said, "We urgently need to engineer a resolution in the Security Council that achieves the aspirations of both sides: independence for the Palestinians and security for Israel," noting that "the Palestinian-Israeli peace will have a domino effect, and working today towards implementing the two-state solution will bring stability and prosperity to our region and the world."
