Cairo - A day after Syria and Lebanon signed an agreement to
create formal diplomatic ties for the first time ever, Samir Geagea,
head of a major Lebanese Christian party and an implacable opponent
of Syria - called for a strong state to ward off Syrian influence,
and also the disarmament of Hezbollah.
In an interview with Deutsche Presse-Agentur in Cairo, the 56-
year-old head of the Lebanese Forces party called on Syria to prove
its good intentions in Lebanon by securing the border and developing
normal diplomatic relations - in contrast to Syria's long-standing
attempts to manipulate Lebanon's volatile political and ethnic mix.
'The decision to establish the ties is a positive step,' he said.
'But other issues - like the list of Lebanese prisoners still held in
Syrian jails, or the military bases of Palestinian factions loyal to
Syria, and the demarcation of borders between two countries - should
follow.'
Syrian troops had occupied Lebanon since the civil war which raged
from 1975 until 1990. The troops left only in 2005, following massive
public demonstrations - sparked by the assassination of former prime
minister Rafik al-Hariri - that became known as the Cedar Revolution.
Geagea, a Maronite Christian from the northern town of Bsharri who
led troops in the civil war, spent 11 years in solitary confinement
during the Syrian occupation as a result of his opposition to Syrian
rule. He was released in 2005, following Syria's departure.
Since 1991 Damascus and Beirut have been tied by a treaty of
'friendship and cooperation,' although Syria has been repeatedly
accused of meddling in Lebanon's politics, most recently for a troop
deployment along the northern border in September.
According to Geagea, this deployment, which Syria says was
intended to curb smuggling, is nothing but an attempt to 'terrorize
the people of Lebanon before the parliamentary elections ... because
they are loyal to the anti-Syrian majority.'
Lebanon is due to hold parliamentary elections in May 2009. The
Western-backed anti-Syrian majority has high support in the north of
the country.
In the meantime, the solution to the spectre of Syrian
intervention in Lebanon was, said Geagea, a strong state and firm
borders.
In the weeks running up to Wednesday's ceremony, Lebanon had
witnessed a number of attacks which Geagea, and others, blamed on
Damascus.
On October 12 members of the group Fatah al-Islam were arrested in
Tripoli in connection with a bomb attack in September - an event,
Geagea said, which was financed by Syria to 'spark chaos in Lebanon.'
'There will be no sovereignty for Lebanon without clear and
effective borders,' he stressed.
'It is time to have a strong Lebanese state that can defend
itself, and the weapons should be in the hands of the Lebanese
government,' he added in a pointed reference to the continued
military dominance of Hezbollah, regarded as the strongest fighting
force in the country.
In 2006 Israel invaded Lebanon in a 33-day war in an attempt to
de-fang the Islamist movement which is widely regarded as funded and
trained by Iran.
Hezbollah's weapons became an even more divisive issue in May
2008, when the group took control of large parts of Beirut in the
worst political crisis since the end of the civil war.
Geagea expressed scepticism over Syria's real motives for
establishing formal political ties. 'Future relations between Lebanon
and Syria depend on Syria,' he said. 'After all, Lebanon never tried
to control Syria.'
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