President Aoun: Lebanon chose negotiations in its national interest, not to satisfy foreign powers

President Joseph Aoun stressed that loyalty must be to Lebanon, warning against relying on foreign powers in domestic disputes.

“Anyone who seeks foreign support against others at home will lose, because foreign powers will abandon them sooner or later,” Aoun said during a meeting with a delegation from the Lebanon Youth Movement headed by Wadih Hanna. “There has never been a war in Lebanon with a winner. Everyone lost, and the country lost.”

Aoun said Lebanon’s decision to pursue negotiations was made as a sovereign state and in the country’s national interest, not to satisfy any foreign party.

“When I call for an end to the state of hostility with Israel, I mean an end to the wars that have destroyed the country and claimed innocent lives. We can no longer bear them. Any other interpretation is wrong and suspicious,” he said.

Aoun also reaffirmed his commitment to the reforms outlined in his inaugural address, saying delays were caused by the war that targeted Lebanon but that efforts to implement them would continue.

“We are fighting corruption, and the way to combat it is through the judiciary, digital government and cooperation between the Lebanese people and the state,” Aoun said.