REPORT: Cardinal Rai meets with Laurent Fabius in France

       
Maronite Patriarch Cardinal Bechara Boutros Rai held a meeting on Monday with Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius upon his arrival to France.          

Prior to his departure to France, Cardinal Rai said from Beirut International Airport that the hybrid law which is based on the majoritarian system and the law of proportionality has become the demand of all Lebanese people pointing out that he will give his blessing to anything that Lebanese factions agree upon.              

He added that President Michel Sleiman is realistic and cannot annul the 1960’s electoral law in the absence of another law.            

As for the issue of the cabinet, Cardinal Rai called for the formation of a consensual cabinet, agreed upon by all parties at the soonest time possible stressing that all parties agreed that the cabinet’s priority is to hold the elections on the basis of a new electoral law.                             

On another note, Cardinal Rai praised the work of the Lebanese Armed Forces and security apparatuses in light of the many challenges facing the country and the rise in the number of Syrian refugees.                

Earlier, Cardinal Rai met with President Michel Sleiman at the Baabda Palace and discussed with him the recent developments in the country.          

It is worth noting that Rai will hold talks also with French President Francois Hollande, noting that he will kick off a pastoral tour in Latin America after his Parisian trip.         

The tour will last until the end of May and include Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, Costa Rica, Colombia and Venezuela.


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