Saudi Ambassador to Lebanon Walid Bukhari met today, Friday, with the head of the "Renewal" parliamentary bloc, MP Michel Maouad. Following the meeting, Maouad pointed out that the Kingdom views the presidential entitlement as an internal Lebanese matter, stating: "The Kingdom's position is clear; it says that this entitlement is a Lebanese internal matter, and you as Lebanese decide what you want. As a country that respects itself, we deal with the results and seek to build strategic partnerships with countries that have chosen to be friends with the Kingdom. All we say is that you come to us and say you want to help the Kingdom save Lebanon, and this is true; we need the support of our Arab brothers, especially the Gulf states, to rebuild and develop our economy. Therefore, it is natural for the Kingdom to deal with a state as a state, and we consider that any candidate for resistance will lead to further isolation."
Maouad confirmed his stance on the presidential elections, saying: "My position is clear personally regarding the battle to elect a president for the republic; this battle is between two projects: the state project and the continuation of the resistance project." He added: "The Kingdom does not interfere in Lebanese internal affairs, and it should not be expected to do so. As deputies, we must not accept any type of interference in our internal affairs, whether from the Kingdom, Iran, the Syrian regime, France, America, or any other party."
He continued: "From here, our insistence in this entitlement is to ensure that it does not continue the policies of isolation, the destruction of the state, the theft of the Lebanese people's funds, and corruption. Therefore, our position as the Renewal bloc, and as part of the opposition, is to confront with all our might any candidate imposed by the resistance project that has brought us to where we are today. Our hand is extended to all Lebanese and all political forces so that together we can reach a logic of building the state and establishing stability and prosperity."
