اقرأ باللغة العربية The resignation of prime minister Saad Al-Hariri took the Lebanese entirely by surprise, especially given Al-Hariri's reiterated assurances regarding the need to preserve stability in Lebanon after an understanding was reached a year ago allowing Michel Aoun to ascend to the presidency and set the country on the path to a balanced, consensus government. It took many months of hard negotiations to reach that crucial understanding between the Free National Movement and the Future Movement. Its chief architects were Foreign Minister Gebran Bassel and Nader Al-Hariri, director of the office of Al-Hariri. The first year has demonstrated that this new covenant made it possible to achieve great progress and to take Lebanese democracy a qualitative step forward. The shift from the majority to the proportional voting system has enabled more equitable representation. There have also been important fiscal reforms, victorious battles to free the Juroud (Arsal) area of terrorists, and success in forming diplomatic and judicial corps on the basis of professional and sectarian quota criteria satisfactory to all parties. Therefore, Al-Hariri's resignation had nothing to do with domestic circumstances. It was not, for example, a form of protest on the pretext of opposing certain features of the government system that have been the source of social tensions. Rather, it was motivated by foreign causes against the backdrop of the conflict between two regional powers: Saudi Arabia and Iran. Naturally, the Lebanese were not only stunned by the resignation but also alarmed by the spectre of war that has reared its head. Fortunately, President Aoun proved adept in managing the crisis in coordination with all political and spiritual forces and Al-Hariri's family. At the same time, Foreign Minister Bassel worked during his tour of European capitals — Brussels, Paris, Rome, Vatican City, London, Berlin, Ankara and Moscow — to ensure that the language of reason and the principles of international law prevailed. His efforts were crucial to the formulation of the French initiative and furnished an example to other war-torn countries in the region of how diplomacy can defuse crises. In 1978, Lebanese diplomacy scored a great victory against the Israeli occupation of South Lebanon. The cry of Lebanon's ambassador to the UN, Ghassan Twini, “Let my people live!” galvanised the UN Security Council into passing Resolution 425 calling for the immediate and unconditional Israeli withdrawal. But Al-Hariri's resignation crisis was something of a different order because of the mystery surrounding it. It was particularly difficult to understand the circumstances in light of historic and mutually beneficial relations between Beirut and Riyadh. The Lebanese community played an important role in the economic rise of Saudi Arabia while the latter's investments in Lebanon helped the process of national reconstruction. The Saudis have also always regarded Lebanon as their “second homeland” and their favourite holiday spot, while Lebanon remains grateful for the role Riyadh played in brokering the Taif Accord in the 1990s, which remains a guarantee for political stability. With such considerations in mind, Foreign Minister Bassel embarked on his diplomatic campaign, simultaneously to defend Lebanon's dignity by securing the return of Al-Hariri. In the course of his visits and communications, he stressed the following points: Firstly, the stability of Lebanon is crucial to the stability of Europe and the rest of the world. To undermine Lebanese security jeopardises international peace and security. It should also be a source of concern for an EU already troubled by the refugee crisis and the growth of terrorism. While Europe responded positively and sympathetically to these points, Egyptian diplomacy acted in tandem in the Gulf in order to help reduce the tensions. The common denominator in these efforts was that the unity, political independence and territorial integrity of Lebanon are non-negotiable. Secondly, any abuse of the need to respect international agreements and diplomatic conventions regarding the treatment of sovereign political authorities would constitute a precedent in the history of international relations. To remain silent in the face of such an affront would jeopardise the general principles on which mankind his built its peaceful and civilisational development, and would give prevalence to anarchy and the law of the jungle. Eventually, the determination to defend Lebanese dignity, the diplomatic drive undertaken by Bassel in the pursuit of sovereign ends, and the French initiative that he set in motion bore fruit last Wednesday in the transfer of Al-Hariri to Paris, as a first stop, and then to Beirut, with a significant detour via Cairo. Lebanese Independence Day this year was marked by a special flavour. This diplomatic success has shown that the unity of the Lebanese people under the leadership of a strong president has made the world respect this tiny country which is no longer a playground where others can settle scores. The writer is a researcher on political and strategic affairs based in Beirut.
