UN envoy on Syrian withdrawal from Lebanon meets with Egyptian president10 March 2005 – The United Nations envoy seeking the withdrawal of some 14,000 Syrian troops from Lebanon today discussed his mission with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak as he prepared for his second series of talks in a month with Lebanese and Syrian leaders.
Terje Roed-Larsen, Secretary-General Kofi Annan's Special Envoy for the implementation of Security Council resolution 1559, which calls for withdrawing all foreign forces from Lebanon, disbanding all militias and extending Government control over the whole country, also discussed Lebanon's upcoming parliamentary elections and wider stability of the region.
Mr. Roed-Larsen said he and President Mubarak saw eye-to-eye on the issues and that they would stay in full contact.
The envoy, who will travel next to Jordan, last visited Lebanon and Syria in the first half of February, his first trip in the new job he assumed in January after serving as UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process. Since then, the murder of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri has increased tension in the area.
At the weekend Syrian President Bashar Al Assad offered a phased withdrawal of his country's troops, which have been in Lebanon since the early stages of the 1975-1990 civil war, without any timetable for completion, but Mr. Annan told reporters in Spain yesterday that "full withdrawal" was the key point.
"I hope he will be able to come back with a timetable," he said of his envoy's latest visit.
|
NEWSLETTER
|
|
Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list
|
|
|
