Wikileaks: Aoun does not trust Sleiman

“Al-Mustaqbal” daily published a leaked cable issued by the U.S. embassy in Beirut on 07/1/2008 and published on “Wikileaks” website as cable number 24. The cable revealed that “Change and Reform bloc” leader MP Michel Aoun has gone too far in his plan to hinder the election of President Michel Sleiman using the opposition’s demands to cripple the majority. 

According to the cable, Aoun claimed he was doing so to “protect” Sleiman from a majority that will turn against him at any dispute.

Despite his “defending-Sleiman” position, Aoun said during a meeting with the U.S. ambassador then Jeffrey Feltman on November 4th, 2008: “I trust no one”, when the ambassador asked him on the reason why he does not trust President Sleiman.

Aoun explained “if the opposition does not get the blocking third, and if March 14 coalition manages to convince Sleiman, after his election, of standing by his ministers in the cabinet, the opposition will be left out of the legislative process”.

For his part, Feltman said that Aoun did not support the election of Sleiman because “if he cannot become president, he will do anything to make sure no one else can”.

Also according to the leaked cable, Aoun downplayed the speech delivered by Hizbollah Secretary General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah on November 2nd, 2008, when he said “I do not believe him when he says that the U.S. is planning on building military bases in Lebanon”, in a clear attempt to appeal to the U.S. government.

Aoun elaborated further to the point where he renounced being Hizbollah’s ally, calling on March 14 coalition to separate between his party and Hizbollah. “If the majority does not make the distinction between them [Hizbollah] and us, it will always fear us, prompting us eventually to get closer to Hizbollah”.