Germany announces joint initiative with France to support Lebanon - Sarmad

German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul announced a German-French initiative regarding Lebanon.

In statements to the German magazine Der Spiegel ahead of the German-French cabinet meeting next week, the minister said, “We want to work with France to formulate a common policy toward Lebanon in order to increase the chances of achieving peace in the Near and Middle East.”

The minister did not disclose further details.

At the same time, Wadephul announced other joint initiatives with France, explaining that the two countries wish to enhance Europe’s capacity to act in foreign policy, among other things, by ending the “overlap of competences” in the European Union’s external policy.

Regarding the war in Ukraine and Iran’s war, Wadephul called for launching a new round of negotiations, stating, “We must now make a very serious attempt to settle both conflicts.” He added that neither conflict will be resolved on the battlefield, but at the negotiating table, and the sooner this happens, the better for the people.

Wadephul believed that the recent increase in violence does not rule out negotiations, noting that there is a military phenomenon characterized by a final surge before entering into talks.

He added, “I can well imagine that we are currently witnessing something like this, because the recent attacks carried out by Russia and Iran in conjunction with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit were certainly not coincidental, but aimed at demonstrating presumed strength.”

The minister affirmed that in both conflicts, he has justified hope that there is an opportunity for progress toward a resolution.