Lebanon’s President Michel Aoun has blamed Israel for attempts to split the Middle East along social and religious lines. “In the Middle East Israel is trying to carve up the region into a patchwork of secular and religious entities, quasi-states, in a bid to put together a sectarian puzzle,” Aoun said in an interview with French daily newspaper Le Figaro. He urged Europe to “support Lebanon’s effort to ensure the safe return of Syrian refugees to their homes,” and to “contribute more to the UN Agency for Palestinian Refugees. With Daesh terrorists effectively routed in Syria and Iraq, the emphasis now is on a political settlement, reconstruction of Syria and ensuring the return of Syrian refugees, including from Lebanon.
by egypttoday.com — CAIRO – President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi met Monday with his Lebanese counterpart Michel Aoun on the sidelines of the 73rd session of the UN General Assembly, currently held in New York. The two presidents discussed means of boosting bilateral relations, as well as the latest developments in the Middle East region. The talks focused on how to end regional crises and alleviate the suffering of the peoples of brotherly countries. Sisi also met the Prime Minister Bojko Borisov and Norway’s Prime Minister Erna Solberg as well as a number of US figures at his residence in New York this evening after his summit with US President Donald Trump. In the same context, for the fifth time within only 24 months, Sisi will meet with his U.S. counterpart Donald Trump in New York, on Monday, within the few coming hours. On the sidelines of the 73rd session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA 73), the two leaders will set together to discuss the current political situation in the Middle East, the Arab-Qatari dispute, and other issues of mutual interest to both countries.
Egypt is one of Washington’s closest allies in the Middle East, receiving US$1.3 billion in US military aid annually. Sisi’s first meeting with Trump was held on September 20, 2016, during Trump’s presidential campaign in New York, also on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly then. In an interview with CNN’s Erin Burnett, Sisi said he had “no doubt” that Republican presidential nominee Trump would make a strong leader. In April 2017, President Trump welcomed Sisi to the White House for the first time in eight years, pledging close cooperation with the Egyptian leader on counterterrorism operations and praising his leadership of the Middle Eastern nation. “I just want to let everybody know, in case there was any doubt, that we are very much behind President al-Sissi,” Trump said, sitting next to his counterpart in the Oval Office. “He’s done a fantastic job in a very difficult situation. We are very much behind Egypt and the people of Egypt. . . . We have strong backing,” he added.
Trump and Sisi appeared focused on security, and they sought to demonstrate warmth, shaking hands during their brief remarks to reporters. This meeting represented an end to the coldness with which Egypt was treated by former U.S. President Barack Obama, who never invited Sisi to Washington. “Since we met last September I have had a deep appreciation and admiration of your {Trump’s} unique personality, especially since you are standing so strong against terrorism,” said Sisi. “Very strongly and openly you will find Egypt beside you,” he added. In September 2017, Sisi flew to New York to participate in the 72nd session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA 72). On the sidelines of the UNGA, President Sisi met Trump and discussed Egypt’s efforts to achieve inter-Palestinian reconciliation as an essential preliminary step to resume negotiations between the Palestinian and Israeli sides. Trump praised Egyptian President’s efforts in reviving the Middle East peace process between the Palestinian and Israeli peoples.
