Syria said yesterday it would deepen ties with its colony neighboring Lebanon, despite a UN Security Council resolution warning against outside interference there. The resolution aimed — in vain — to head off a vote in Lebanon's Parliament to extend the term of Syrian-backed President Emile Lahoud for three years after his current six-year term expires. Many Council members regarded the extension as imposed by Syria, which dominates Lebanon politically and has 17,000 troops there. "The most important thing of all is that brotherly Syrian-Lebanese relations take the path of more cooperation, coordination and congruity," Syrian Information Minister Ahmad Al-Hassan told a press conference.
He said Syria was sorry the UN Council had "given in to US pressure" to intervene in the internal affairs of a sovereign state. Syria branded the resolution a failure because it squeaked through with the minimum number of votes. The White House said Damascus had pressured, threatened and intimidated Lebanese officials to get the constitution changed, accusations Hassan denied. He in turn accused the United States of using the Security Council to punish Syria for its opposition to the war on Iraq. "It is trying to exploit the Security Council as a cover to continue what it failed to achieve in its world war — not on terror, as the neo-conservatives in the American administration claim, but to spread American imperialism," he said. "The reasons for the latest Security Council resolution come under the headline of settling scores with Syria and Lebanon over their opposition to this war."
Lahoud moved yesterday to heal the wounds of the political battle, saying the debate reinforced the country's democracy. In a statement, he underlined the need to "turn the page of the past in this new stage, to open up to the future ... and most of all strive to bring the people and the state together." |