House Speaker Nabih Berri's Press Office issued a statement on Sunday, indicating that "the House Speaker has informed the Prime Minister-designate that his Movement will not be participating in the next government on the grounds it is based upon, while expressing readiness for maximum cooperation in all that is necessary for Lebanon's stability and finances, and to undertake reforms and save its economy."
"The problem is not with the French, but rather it is internal and from within," the statement said, citing the reasons for the decision not to partake in the upcoming cabinet by stating that "a single headline for the government of specialization was declared in exchange for the absence of party loyalty, parliamentary affiliation, vetoes on ministries, seeking outside power and failure to launch consultations."