Lebanon is at a “historic moment” that could allow it to move from decades of weak State institutions, militias and economic collapse toward a sovereign State built on stability, development and peace, Kataeb Party leader Samy Gemayel said during a meeting with a delegation from the American Task Force on Lebanon (ATFL).

Gemayel received the delegation, led by ATFL President Edward Gabriel, at the Kataeb Party’s headquarters in Saifi. The meeting focused on Lebanon’s political situation and the country’s prospects for strengthening state institutions and sovereignty.

Gemayel praised the role played by ATFL, saying its members had become an important channel for conveying Lebanese concerns to American policymakers through their repeated visits to Lebanon.

“We count on our friends in the United States to stand up for Lebanon’s sovereignty and to keep Lebanon high on the American agenda,” Gemayel said.

He said Lebanon now had an opportunity to leave behind an era characterized by “the absence of a functioning state, militias and collapse” and enter a new phase focused on state-building, reconstruction, modernization, development and peace.

“For us, this is a historic opportunity,” he said. “We cannot allow this period to end without finally reaching the Lebanon we have been waiting for; a Lebanon built on statehood, sovereignty and stability.”

Gabriel: Same goals for Lebanon

Gabriel said the meeting gave the delegation an opportunity to hear directly from Gemayel about the challenges facing Lebanon and to better understand the country’s political and institutional difficulties.

“We share the same goals for Lebanon,” Gabriel said, according to the account of the meeting.

He stressed the importance of maintaining communication with Lebanese political forces and listening to the different challenges facing the country in order to determine how best to move forward.

Gabriel has previously said that ATFL’s visits to Lebanon are intended to provide U.S. policymakers with a clearer understanding of developments on the ground and to strengthen dialogue between Washington and Lebanese officials. The organization has also been engaged in discussions over reforms, security and Hezbollah’s disarmament. 

The ATFL delegation included Paul Salem, Thomas G. Abraham, Makram Azar, Ahmed Boomrod, Michel Chammas, Ray Dabbana, Nijad I. Fares, Tony Frem, Naseem Haffar, Oscar Seikaly, Salim Sessine, Kamal Shouhayib, Jacques F. Tohme, Steven Howard, Matthew Audi and Hunter Williamson.

The meeting was also attended by Kataeb MPs Nadim Gemayel, Salim Sayegh and Adeeb Abdel Massih, former minister Alain Hakim, as well as Kataeb Political Bureau members Joelle Bou Abboud, Zeina Hobeika and Ghassan Abu Jaoudeh, Foreign Affairs Department head Marwan Abdallah, department coordinator Anthony Bou Abboud and Lawyers’ Committee member Imad Khoury.