By Xinhua
Beirut : Lebanese Parliament Speaker NabihBerri said that he was stunned by the American stand regarding postponement of the Lebanese presidential elections, As-Safirdaily reported Tuesday.
“If the Americans changed their minds and are now supporting the Arab initiative” or “are they provoking the Lebanese to fight by bringing their warships?” Berri was quoted as saying to his visitors on Monday.
Berri announced Monday the 16th time of postponement of the Lebanese presidential election session until March 25.The White House on Monday denounced delays in Lebanon’s presidential elections as “unacceptable” and urged outside forces to stop meddling in the deadlocked political process in Lebanon. Berri’s Development and Liberation parliamentary bloc said following their weekly meeting on Monday that the postponement ofthe election was “aimed at giving more opportunities for the Islamic summit to present more feasible solutions for the Lebanese crisis.”
The bloc was referring to a meeting of foreign ministers fromthe Organization of the Islamic Conference underway in Dakar,Senegal.
Lebanon’s presidential seat has been vacant since Nov. 24, 2007when former president Emile Lahoud ended his term. The Lebanese political crisis over electing a new president wasstill mired in a deadlock despite hard efforts carried out by ArabLeague Secretary General Amr Moussa.
The opposition bloc refused to give up a veto power in the new government, thus, demanded a “full basket agreement” before insuring the quorum needed in parliament to elect a president. Moussa’s efforts emerged after the Arab League endorsed in January a three-point plan aimed at solving the political crisis in Lebanon.
The three point Arab initiative calls for the immediate election of Army commander Gen. Michel Suleiman as president, the formation of a national unity government with no group getting a veto power, and the endorsement of a new election law.