The governments of both countries agreed to establish “long-lasting strategic relations, with great common interests”
The Lebanese Prime Minister Najib mikati He said this Saturday during his first visit to Damascus that A committee will be formed with the new authorities of Syria to demarcate land and maritime borders, with the aim of resolve the historic dispute following the fall of the Bashar al-Assad regime.
“The priority is to demarcate the land and sea border between Lebanon and Syria, but This will take some time "And there is no need to delay other matters because of this," Mikati said at a press conference alongside the new leader of the Syrian administration, Islamist Ahmed al Sharaa, formerly known by his nom de guerre Abu Mohamed al Jolani.
For this reason, the Lebanese announced that "a committee will be created to demarcate the borders," without offering further details.
Mikati arrived in Damascus this Saturday in The first visit by a Lebanese head of government to Syria since the outbreak of war between the Assad regime and rebels in 2011, and at a time when the new Syrian authorities are seeking to strengthen ties with the international community and its neighbors.
“We discussed the situation on the land border between the two countries and the urgency of strengthening mutual measures to protect the security of the two countries and prevent any act that would harm their security and stability,” Mikati said, referring to the violent and smuggling incidents taking place across the dividing line.
Al Sharaa said Syria's priority now is security and ensuring the state's monopoly on weapons, but also “reassure neighboring countries.”
"If it were up to me, I would leave the border between the two countries open, and there would be nothing separating us at all," said the leader of the Islamist coalition. Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) which overthrew Assad in a lightning offensive lasting just two weeks, culminating in the rebels taking Damascus on December 8.
“Solving problems through negotiations”
Al Sharaa and Mikati also committed this Saturday to maintain strong relationships after years of tension between the two countries. The new Syrian leader said he hoped to open a new chapter in bilateral ties, days after Lebanon elected a president on Thursday following two years of stalemate.
“There will be long-lasting strategic relations, with great common interests”, Al Sharaa said at a joint press conference in Damascus, estimating that the election of Joseph Aoun to the presidency would lead to a “stable situation” in Lebanon.
The Syrian leader called for forgetting “past relations” between the two countries and “giving the two peoples a chance” to establish “positive relations […] based on respect and sovereignty of the two States.”
“We will try to resolve the problems through negotiations and dialogue”he declared.
The new Syrian authorities said that Al Sharaa called Aoun on Saturday to congratulate him on his presidential inauguration. During the call, the two leaders “confirmed their willingness to work on building and strengthening positive relations between Syria and Lebanon […] and on the common points that unite them.”
For his part, the Lebanese Prime Minister noted that new relations should be based on “mutual respect, equality and national sovereignty.” And he added: “Syria is Lebanon’s natural gateway to the Arab world, and as long as it goes well, Lebanon will do well.”
For three decades, under the Al Assad clan, Syria was a dominant political and military force in Lebanon, where it intervened during the 1975-1990 civil war and where it is blamed for numerous assassinations of political figures.
The Syrian dictatorship, which shares a 330-kilometer border with Lebanon, withdrew its troops from the neighbouring country in 2005 under local and international pressure, following the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafic Hariri.
Tensions between the two countries have been heightened by the military support that the Lebanese terrorist group Hezbollah provided to former dictator Bashar al-Assad, an ally of Iran, during the Syrian civil war, which left more than half a million dead.
(With information from AFP and EFE)
Source: INFOBAE