President Michel Suleiman
Photo: Reuters
Lebanon says will work with Syria 'to confront suspicious Israeli schemes'
Syrian army chief Gen. Ali Habib holds talks in Beirut with Lebanese President Suleiman, who says two armies will work together to 'confront joint enemy Israel and terrorism'
Syria's army chief sought Tuesday to improve military ties with Lebanon as part of efforts to bridge the gulf between the two nations, lingering after Syria's almost 30-year-long military domination of its smaller neighbor.
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Accompanied by a high-ranking military delegation, Gen. Ali Habib held talks in Beirut with President Michel Suleiman and army commander Gen. Jean Kahwaji. Habib is the highest ranking military official to visit Lebanon since Syria's withdrawal in 2005.
The visit comes as relations between the two countries have steadily improved in recent months. The two long-feuding rivals, who both gained independence from France in the 1940s, opened embassies and established diplomatic relations last year.
A statement from Suleiman's office said he thanked Habib for the assistance provided by Syria's military to Lebanon's army. It did not specify what the assistance entailed.
The statement also added the two armies will aim together to "confront suspicious schemes by the joint enemy, Israel, and terrorism." Lebanon and Syria consider Israel their common enemy, often alluding to what they call Israeli plans against their territories.
Damascus' hold on Lebanon unraveled in 2005, after former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri was killed in a truck bombing that many Lebanese blame on Syria. Damascus denies any involvement. After Hariri's assassination, Syria caved to US-led international pressure and withdrew its troops from here.
A Lebanese military statement said the two sides agreed Tuesday to exchange security information to fight terrorism, prevent cross-border smuggling, work on training and logistics and intensify efforts to reveal the fate of dozens of Lebanese soldiers who went missing during a 1990 battle between Syrian troops and soldiers loyal to a Lebanese commander.
Relations between the two countries reached a turning point last August, when they agreed to establish ties and demarcate their contentious border.
In January, Lebanon's Defense Minister Elias Murr visited Syria for the first time since escaping a 2005 assassination attempt which he suggested at the time was the work of Syrian intelligence agents.
