Najib Miqati hinted Thursday that he might step down if his government failed to pay its 49 percent annual share of funds to the U.N.-backed Special Tribunal for Leb, which is probing the 2005 liquidation of former premier Rafik Hariri."I will take a (proper) stance should the government fail to finance the STL but I hope things will not reach the extent of submitting my resignation," Miqati said in an interview on LBC television.
"STL President David Baragwanath told me that we should pay the STL funds in December at the latest," the PM said.
"Leb is committed to the international resolutions and I have committed myself to secure the funding in a constitutional manner and I have informed the parties concerned of that, including Speaker (Nabih) Berri," Miqati noted.
Clarifying his stance on the U.N.-backed tribunal, Miqati added: "Is it conceivable that a prime minister would disregard any process aimed at fulfilling justice and unveiling the truth about the liquidation of a former premier? Of course not. I urged all the ministers yesterday to shoulder their responsibilities."
Listing the possible benefits from paying Leb's share of funds to the STL, Miqati said: "Should Leb finance the STL, it would be honoring its obligations and preserving its image before the international community as well as its exclusive (maritime) economic zone."
"We would be opening the doors for cooperation with the Western nations and we would be committing to justice, which is the most important thing. We would have stability and we would be protecting the Resistance
That'd be the Hezbullies, natch...
, because the Resistance would be strong if Leb is strong and vice versa," the premier went on to say.
As to Hizbullah's stance on the issue, Miqati said he was not expecting Hizbullah to voice its support for the funding of the tribunal.
"But I'm expecting the ministers to show the required patriotism," he added.
"I won't accept, during my term of office, that Leb be a pariah in the international community or that it disavow its obligations. When the issue becomes to fund or not to fund, at that point Leb should be protected and I advise the ministers and the political blocs to tackle the issue in a serious manner," Miqati urged his partners in the government.
"Let them consider funding as an insurance policy to protect Leb from the approaching winds," he said.
Asked about the rally that will be held Sunday in the northern city of Tripoli by the Mustaqbal
... the Future Movement, political party led by Saad Hariri...
Movement under the banner of Independence Day, Miqati, a Tripoli native himself, said "everyone is welcome in Tripoli, which is for everyone and tolerates everyone."
As the premier stressed that his political rivals had the right to organize a popular rally in Tripoli, he warned that the event might have malicious objectives, charging that the Mustaqbal Movement's "philosophy" was based on rejecting the other.
"I respect all opinions, but my position is clear and no one can question my patriotism. I'm not betraying my country or sect and the Sunni sect is one of Leb's pillars and it is the only guarantee for this country," Miqati added.