By KUNA,
London : British Prime Minister Gordon Brown Thursday reiterated his support for the Lebanese Government.
In answer to a question by KUNA during his regular monthly press briefing at No 10 Downing Street, the Prime Minister condemned the behaviour of Hezbollah during the recent events as “unacceptable”.
The Prime Minister recalled he offered his full backing to his Lebanese counterpart Fouad Sinora when he met him lately in London.
“I know the whole international community wants to support him and I know there is an Arab League initiative and we must do what we can so that peace and stability can reign in what is a troubled area of land”, Brown added.
Turning to Iraq, the Prime Minister reiterated that the UK was committed to the future of Iraq and he said he believed that British forces are making an important difference.
“We are committed to moving from what is called combat in Iraq to an overwatch role, and that means our main goal is training Iraqi forces for the future, helping the economic development of the Basra area, and making sure that the people of the area can have local elections soon”.
Brown also emphasized the importance that the people should have a stake in the future of Iraq and are in a position to take over the airport and bring it into civilian use, and that the port is brought back into work.
“In all the areas we have been involved in Iraq we are determined to work on behalf of the local Iraqi people to make sure that they feel that their country can move forward economically, socially and politically and that is what our goal will be over the next few months”, the Prime Minister stressed.
In conclusion, Brown said any decision about troop numbers will be made on the advice of the military commanders on the ground and in the light of the situation on the ground as what happened during the latest Iraqi Government offensive against armed militias in Basra.