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| Syria-Lebanon-Iran |
| Suleiman Receives Message from Obama and Confirmation of Ongoing Military Support |
| 2010-11-21 |
[An Nahar] President Michel Suleiman received on Friday a written letter from his American counterpart Barack B.O.Obama congratulating him on Leb's Independence Day. The message was delivered to him on Friday by General James Mattis, the U.S. Central Command chief, during a meeting that included U.S. Ambassador to Leb Maura Connelly. Mattis had pledged on Friday that his country would continue to support the Lebanese army, a week after Washington lifted a freeze on military aid to Beirut. "General Mattis came to Leb to reiterate ... the U.S. government's position that the United States is committed to the continuity of (the Central Command's) relationship with the Lebanese army and to supporting legitimate institutions of the Lebanese state," the U.S. Embassy said. The general "pledged to continue to support training and engagement assistance to the Lebanese army in order to build greater military capacity and deepen our relationship," it said in a statement. "The U.S. believes its assistance to the LAF (Lebanese armed forces) contributes to improving regional stability." Mattis arrived on Friday for a brief visit, his first to Leb, during which he met President Suleiman, Defense Minister Elias al-Murr and Lebanese army chief General Jean Qahwaji. The chairman of the U.S. House Committee on Foreign Affairs, Howard Berman, last week lifted a hold on 100 million dollars in military aid to Leb. The United States has provided 720 million dollars in aid to the Lebanese army since 2005. But U.S. aid to Leb's military was suspended following a deadly skirmish between the Lebanese and Israeli armies in August. Berman said he had received assurances that assistance to the Lebanese army had not fallen into the hands of Hizbullah, which fought a devastating war against Israel in 2006. But he expressed ongoing concern over tensions between Leb and Israel in the wake of the 2006 conflict. |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #3 Only without the Magnificent part. |
| Posted by: Thing From Snowy Mountain 2010-11-21 15:03 |
| #2 No, this guy's name is Suleiman. You know, like Suleiman the Magnificent. |
| Posted by: Thing From Snowy Mountain 2010-11-21 15:02 |
| #1 I thought the article talked about Saruman. My mistake. |
| Posted by: Alaska Paul 2010-11-21 14:29 |