He said this priority was reflected in recent Cabinet decisions, taken after Lebanon “found itself facing a war it did not choose, but which was imposed on it.”
Speaking during the annual debate of the UN General Assembly, Mr. Salam said the war broke out “despite our repeated warnings of the dangers of being drawn into it.”
“As the war expanded across the region and initiatives multiplied to end it, we held firm to a principle that admits no compromise: no one speaks on behalf of Lebanon, and no one negotiates for it except the Lebanese State, through its constitutional institutions.”
He rejected any return to Lebanon being used as an arena for others’ conflicts or as a bargaining chip.
“Lebanon’s future is not to be decided on its behalf, and its security and stability must not be the price of deals struck in its absence,” he said.
