With enthusiasm and optimism, key figures in the "forceful" authority on the Lebanese scene are engaged, with some not hesitating in discussions to treat the Aqabiyah crime on the basis of "sometimes harm brings benefit," considering it brought back international interest in Lebanon. It has become a "bloody magnet" for European positions and visits aimed at preserving Lebanese stability and the safety of the "UNIFIL" forces in the south. Following the visit of the Italian Foreign Minister yesterday, and with the upcoming visit by both the Spanish Prime Minister and the French Defense Minister to Beirut at the end of the month, information about a cross-border external movement led by the French president, in cooperation with Washington, Riyadh, and Doha, has emerged to formulate acceptable solutions to Lebanon's crisis.
Informed sources revealed that a "low-profile movement is underway in the internal kitchen to prepare for a Lebanese settlement framework based on external formulae." The sources told "Nidaa Al-Watan" that internal communications and consultations have intensified recently on various fronts to outline a "roadmap" that establishes a common ground for a consensual presidential vision that aligns with external movements and alleviates the burdens of external pressures and impositions on the expected Lebanese settlement. They emphasized that the "main forces in the March 8 coalition have begun to sense the danger of continued obstruction and stagnation policies, so they decided to move forward in seeking a solution to the presidential crisis that meets the concerns of most domestic parties and can gain supportive and guaranteeing external cover to ensure the elements of its success, on the grounds that any internal Lebanese solution will not succeed, either presidentially or economically or financially, without international and Arab support."
Consequently, the sources expected that "the public signs of internal movement would begin to appear gradually after the holiday break through successive initiatives handled by individuals accustomed to operating on this front," hinting at a meeting between Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri and General Security Chief Major General Abbas Ibrahim in Ain el-Tineh, focusing mainly on the presidential file while reviewing the results of Ibrahim's visit to Iraq. They expressed belief that "the initiative that will launch at the beginning of the new year will not be limited to just the presidency, but may encompass a package of understandings regarding the government and necessary reforms and how to approach the oil and gas file with the impending start of the consortium’s drilling in block number 9, up to how to complete the implementation of the Taif Accord, after the external parties have shown firm adherence to this Lebanese constitution and reaffirmed the necessity of applying all its provisions."
