Damascus has been sending frequent messages to Lebanese officials that it was no longer eager to restore ties with its neighbor and including Lebanon in its reconstruction process.
The attitude was prompted by Syria’s exclusion from the upcoming Arab economic and development summit that will be hosted by Beirut in January, said sources from the Lebanese March 8 camp that is close to the Hezbollah party.
Damascus allies, Lebanese parliament Speaker Nabih Berri and Hezbollah officials have criticized Beirut’s failure to invite Syria to the summit.
Syrian Ambassador to Lebanon Ali Abdulkarim Ali joined the fray, saying: “Ties between Lebanon and Syria are not tense, but they are not at the level that the interests between them demand.”
Lebanese MP Qassem Hashem, of Berri’s Development and Liberation bloc, said: “Lebanon has been late in displaying openness to Damascus.”
“Syrian officials have the right to take the stance that they see fit, whether in including Lebanon in the reconstruction effort or other issues,” he continued.
Director of the Levant Institute for Strategic Affairs, Dr. Sami Nader questioned such statements, saying: “Lebanon’s foreign policy must serve the interests of the country. Normalizing ties with Syria is an issue of intense internal debate in Lebanon.”
“The Lebanese state has vital interests with Arab and powerful western countries that are all boycotting Syria. Lebanese interest, therefore, cannot tolerate a unilateral decision to be open to Syria because that will mean we have aligned ourselves with the Iranian axis,” he explained.
He also deemed as “inaccurate” claims that Syria will not include Lebanon in its reconstruction process if it does not normalize ties with it.
This process has not even started and it hinges on a final political solution in Syria, said Nader.
For his part, Hashem told Asharq Al-Awsat that political ties between countries should be based on sound foundations.
“Lebanon,” he said, “has not committed to these foundations. The relationship with Syria has never reached the required level between two neighbors.”
He also stressed that it was in Lebanon’s interest to display openness to Damascus, whether in reconstruction or other fields.
“How can we look forward to rectifying ties with Damascus as we approach an economic summit that excludes it?” he asked.
Lebanon has not exerted enough efforts to convince Arab countries to restore ties with Damascus, Hashem said.
Moreover, he stated that the March 8 camp and all of Syria’s allies in Lebanon have never stopped pushing for the government to revive ties with its Syrian counterpart.
They will continue along this path after the formation of a new Lebanese government, he vowed.
The past decades have proven that Lebanon’s interest lies in enjoying “excellent” ties with Syria, added the MP.
Nader, for his part, slammed Syrian criticism against Lebanon, listing a number of shortcomings in dealing with Beirut.
He said that Syria has not been cooperative enough with Lebanon in the refugee file. It has also imposed strict border measures on Lebanese transit trucks. It has also employed its allies in Lebanon to take escalatory stances that have impeded the formation of a government for months.
“If they want to talk about shortcomings, then Lebanon has a lot to say in this regard,” Nader stressed.
